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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25091989">Now You've Found Me, There's No Boundaries</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenofquiet17/pseuds/queenofquiet17'>queenofquiet17</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Letting Love Be [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Will &amp; Grace</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Bisexual Character, F/F, Hotel Sex, Lesbian Sex, Smut and Angst and Hope oh my!, Will &amp; Grace Revival</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 05:15:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>27,211</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25091989</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenofquiet17/pseuds/queenofquiet17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>There was something different about Grace once she got the L.A. air into her lungs. It wasn’t just the frenetic anxiety that came along with proving yourself to a group of judgmental strangers. That energy she knew like the back of her hand. That energy she knew how to respond to with any number of remedies that worked in the past. But this, right now, was the energy of a woman with a secret. A secret that she was dead set on keeping from the world. A secret that she may not have even let herself in on. A secret that Karen could swear made Grace nervous to be around her.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>A secret that Karen had a hunch about. A secret she was certain she could confirm in no time.</i>
</p><p>When Karen agreed to accompany Grace to a design conference in Los Angeles, she was expecting to spend her time keeping her boss from falling apart. She had no idea that Grace would be turning her world upside down. But she knew she had been waiting twenty years for her to do it.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Grace Adler/Karen Walker</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Letting Love Be [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1608952</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Now</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I did not mean for this to take so long (writing during a pandemic is hard!), but I am so glad this is finally done. All my love to my <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/disgruntledkittenface">Bookworm</a> for flailing and yelling at me when reading the finished product. I always have a moment of self-doubt with these things, but you always make me feel like I can do anything.</p><p>While this can be read as a standalone, you'll probably get more out of it if you read <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22351408/chapters/53395918">Forty-Five Steps in the Same Direction</a> first. This fic was inspired by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FA-JhqNWmE&gt;">"Boundaries"</a> by Celine Dion. Lyrics will appear in chapters two and three.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span class="u"> <em> Now </em> </span>
</p><p>She never should have walked through this door. She knew that once she did, it would be over, back to a reality where nothing had happened and no one would believe her if she tried to tell them otherwise. But she couldn’t stand the thought of watching Grace let go first, walking into 9C and leaving everything they shared behind like it was nothing, like it was forgettable, like it never even happened. Even though that was the point. Even though she was the one who set the ground rules in the first place. Even though she was the one who sealed their fate. But she would have said anything just to get near Grace’s fire.</p><p>She just didn’t think she would burn all the way down to ash.</p><p>If Karen was being completely honest with herself, she knew she shouldn’t even be here. She knew they should have gone their separate ways at the airport, she should have sent Grace back to Will before pushing forward on that lonely path to a home that didn’t quite feel like home, resigning herself to a night of trying to fall asleep in a cold, empty bed after she had gotten so used to having her wildfire girl next to her to keep her warm. She should have put as much distance between them as she possibly could, so she had time to work on repairing the walls Grace had so lovingly destroyed over the last few days. Quite possibly, she shouldn’t have let it get this far at all, shouldn’t have encouraged Grace to go for what she wanted (what they both wanted), shouldn’t have been so eager to pull Grace in, to keep her close, to keep her all to herself, to do whatever it took to be completely surrounded by her. It didn’t matter that she felt more like herself in those last few days than she ever had before. She was used to brave faces and squashed emotions; she had no right to mess with a system that always seemed to work.</p><p>Quite possibly, she shouldn’t have agreed to go on this work trip with Grace in the first place. Anybody on the outside looking in would have told them it didn’t make sense. Hell, she’d bet her entire fortune that Will told Grace it didn’t make sense the second he found out. There was nothing for her to do there, not from a conference standpoint. She would just be sitting there, bored out of her mind when she had to sit through whatever mind-numbing talk about fabric or pillows or whatever else it is that Grace is usually concerned about. And when her presence wasn’t requested at the conference, she would be running up a tab in the hotel bar, swimming in gin until Grace came to pull her out of the deep end.</p><p>But she was always one for doing things she shouldn’t do.</p><p>Things like letting herself fall for her boss.</p><p>Things like letting herself fall at all.</p><p>Karen knew it was dangerous to run off to the West Coast with Grace, being alone together like that, thousands of miles away from anyone who cared about them; that was part of the reason why she did it. She needed to feel something other than the sadness and loneliness her divorce from Stan had brought on. And after decades of being as close as she was to Grace, of sharing beds and gentle kisses, of loaded glances and deliberate entendres, she knew it was only a matter of time before the lines they shouldn’t dare to cross disappeared entirely. But it wasn’t like she only agreed to this trip because the idea of the point of no return was so tempting; she never would have done the things she did if the redhead didn’t ask her to. She could see the way Grace was already starting to spiral into frantic self-doubt before she even started to put together her talk for this conference. She saw the way Grace was actively trying to ignore the way it swirled in her head, in her stomach. And she knew that it was only a matter of time before Grace completely imploded if she went to the conference on her own. There was no choice in the matter; she needed to be there to keep Grace grounded, to boost her spirits, to get her through this conference relatively unscathed.</p><p>This was what she was expecting: a few blunt pep talks, more than a few drinks. Keeping Grace focused, letting her vent her stress, offering to carry the weight of it on her own shoulders. Sitting in the front row during her talk so she had a familiar face to calm her nerves. Watching her nail her talk, triumphantly answering the questions thrown at her with a newfound sense of ease. Congratulating her on a job well done, being unable to refuse a little “Told ya so” moment. A few more drinks, except this time, they’d be celebratory. Slugging through a bit more of the conference before inevitably convincing Grace to slip out, go rogue, have a little fun.</p><p>This was what she couldn’t have seen coming: the strength of Grace’s hold on her hand the night they made that hotel suite theirs. The thrill she got when she felt the way Grace arched herself to her touch. The way she sometimes started to quake before she even felt Grace’s mouth on her. How long she considered running away with Grace, not going back to Manhattan just yet, before the redhead had suggested it as a loophole to their rules. How she felt complete for the very first time the morning she first woke up next to Grace, knowing this wasn’t just another one of their friendly little slumber parties. The way it filled her, knowing that Grace held all of her secrets and still had room in her arms to hold her, too. The confidence she had that Grace wouldn’t run from her the way everyone else did. The way they fit an entire world into such a small space. How afraid she was of messing it all up. That sinking feeling she got when she realized she needed to follow the rules even though she wanted to break them into a million pieces, that it was the right thing to do.</p><p>The way the right thing to do felt like the biggest mistake of her life.</p><p>She had been waiting for Grace to say something the entire ride over here. Hell, she was waiting for Grace to say something on the plane; after all, the redhead was the one to fight against their rules from the second they put them into place. But neither of them could cut through the silence once they left that haven of a hotel suite. And as much as she kept telling herself this was the best thing for both of them, to make it easier to go about their business when they crash landed into their old reality, Karen couldn’t stand knowing that she was the one who did this. She was the one who flipped on a dime. She was the one who kept as much distance as possible this morning. She was the one who shut down, who embraced the quiet, who discouraged Grace from asking “What if?” just once more. She was the one who ended things before they inevitably got worse.</p><p>It was her fault; she knew it was.</p><p>And now, she opened the unlocked door to 9A to be swept up in her best friend’s unassuming embrace, giving up everything she always wanted the second she stepped through the threshold.</p><p>The second she was able to break free from Jack’s hug, she dropped her bags at the door and made a beeline for the emergency vodka she kept hidden underneath the kitchen sink. It was a practice she started back when this used to be Grace’s apartment, sticking a full bottle of Stoli under there after that disastrous dinner party the redhead threw to try to convince everyone she could lead a life separate from Will’s. But even after Grace moved back into 9C and Karen started splitting the rent on this place with Will to keep a roof over Jack’s head, she always kept a bottle in 9A in case she ever needed it. And there were times she absolutely needed it. Like when she caught Stan cheating on her with Lorraine all those years ago and made the decision to leave him. Or when she overstepped as Jack’s coach for that ridiculous gay spelling bee and she waited for him at his apartment after she got kicked out for cheating, wondering if this well-intentioned misstep was going to be the thing that tarnished her in his eyes. Or the time she quit Grace Adler Designs to prove a point--the time they both like to pretend never happened--and realized she had just left the closest thing to home she had ever known, instinctively running over here and staying until Jack finally told her she could hide at OutTV until she inevitably went back to her home and her girl. She made sure she always had something here, just in case she ever needed a little liquid courage to help her face her troubles.</p><p>Call her crazy, but she was pretty sure this was going to be one of those times.</p><p>“You look different,” Jack said, his puzzled tone making her hold her breath as she poured the vodka into the first glass she could find. There was no way he could figure it out. No way. As much as he liked to think he knew the ins and outs of her, some walls were just built too high to peek over.</p><p>She could hide this; she was sure she could.</p><p>“Oh, whaddya talk? I do not,” she huffed, waving him off as she set the bottle down on the kitchen counter. She took a fortifying sip from her glass, taking comfort in the way it slid into her system like a shot of reassurance.</p><p>“You do too! I could see it the second you got here. It’s like something softened you, but in a good way.” In an instant, a sly grin started to play across his face, warming his features as it started to chill Karen to the bone. “I haven’t seen you like this since before the divorce. What happened over there?”</p><p>What happened over there? Oh, nothing. Her entire world just split open, and she had no idea how to put it back together again.</p><p>Although, if putting it back together again meant pretending Grace’s hands never memorized the turns her curves took, Karen was content to scatter the pieces as far as she could.</p><p>“Poodle, nothing happened,” she said softly, hoping her voice didn’t sound like it was buckling under the lie. “I just needed to get away from Manhattan, I guess. Relax a little bit.”</p><p>Jack narrowed his gaze and shook his head, and she had the sinking feeling that she was screwed. “Huh-uh. I don’t buy it. I know this glow,” he said as he studied her. “It’s not an ‘I got to relax’ glow. It’s an ‘I just got back from a sex vacation’ glow.” He furrowed his brow like he was trying to put together a puzzle with a few pieces missing from the box. “But that doesn’t even make sense, you were with Grace the whole time.”</p><p>They let that hang in the air for an excruciating moment. Karen couldn’t speak, even if she wanted to. She was waiting for him to put it together, mentally scrambling for a way to keep this light, to brush it off, to keep him from knowing how much Grace had truly affected her over the last few days. She was hoping that he would just let the thought go; the pause was long enough to make her think he had lost interest in this guessing game. But then his eyes grew wider. And his grin got bigger. And her heart pounded harder.</p><p>“Oh my <em> god! </em> Karen! You little minx!” Devil. He figured it out. He was going to give her hell for sleeping with Grace. He was going to ask for all the gory details. He was going to… “You met someone over there, didn’t you?!”</p><p>He was going to just narrowly miss the point.</p><p>Karen laughed into her glass as a nervously relieved reflex, shifted her gaze to her drink in case he could see the heat she felt rising in her cheeks. At least he didn’t connect the dots the whole way. But she should have known that was the question he would ask; she was hard pressed to think of a vacation he came back from that didn’t have some illicit rendezvous in the middle of it, to think of a travel story that didn’t have a “Josh with these <em> gorgeous </em> blue eyes” or a “Tony with the ass that wouldn’t quit” or some unnamed “cutie at the cabana” as the main character. Good lord, he asked this question every time, even when she was still with Stan, because back then, little things like a wedding band and commitment didn’t mean you couldn’t have a little bit of fun as far as he was concerned. Now that he’d found Estefan during what she was so sure was just another one of those stories, Karen foolishly assumed Jack wouldn’t be thinking about this kind of thing. And she was sure that he wasn’t, at least when it came to his own life. But now, the tables have turned. Now, he was the one in the committed relationship while she was single and trying to acquire her sea legs. She hated the shift, wasn’t quite sure how to navigate it. But she knew she had to say something.</p><p>“Well...I don’t know. Maybe.”</p><p>It was the only answer she could think to give, the only one that didn’t feel like a lie she couldn’t sell, the only one that let her hide the more intimate details she didn’t want him to know. It was impossible to meet someone after you’ve known them for two decades the way Karen knew Grace. You spend every day with another person for as long as they have, and that person becomes part of you, regardless of whether you wanted it to happen. You know the way they take their coffee, you know what makes them tick. You know what breaks their heart. You know what each one of their smiles means, and you know how to make each one shine through. You know when to give them space. You know when to hold them close and not let go.</p><p>But the version of Grace she saw in Los Angeles was not a version she had ever met before. This was a version who dared to play. This was a version who guided her hands and quivered under her touch. Who took to wearing Karen’s blue robe like she had been shrugging into it for years. Who could make Karen’s name sound as exhilarating in a quiet moment as it did when it was wrapped inside a moan. Who smiled in wonder every time she made Karen cry out in ecstasy, as if she couldn’t believe she ever had the power to do that. Whose wildfire still glowed in the middle of the night, long after she had fallen asleep. Who fit perfectly inside Karen’s arms like she was always meant to be there. Who took Karen’s heart into her hands and cradled it like it was the most precious gift she could have been given. Who made Karen feel safe for the first time in years.</p><p>Who became Karen’s Cinderella, even if Karen was the one to leave a piece of her behind for Grace to find.</p><p>She didn’t know how to begin to explain this to Jack; a big part of her felt as though it was useless to even try. As his excited pleas for her to give up the goods started to give way to the memories in her mind, though, she knew he wouldn’t stop until he got a satisfying answer. But she couldn’t help herself from slipping back into the memory of that hotel suite, of Grace climbing into her bed, Grace pulling the bricks out of her walls one by one until there was nowhere left to hide. Grace showing her it was okay to be this exposed, as long as you trusted the one who exposed you. She would give anything to be in that world of trust again. She would give anything to feel the way Grace’s hand felt woven with hers as they made that first fated walk to her hotel suite, the way Grace kept brushing up against her--accidentally or on purpose, she couldn’t be sure--during those forty-five steps to their truth.</p><p>She would give anything to simply get Grace back to her as soon as she possibly could.</p><p>If that meant having to live in her memories right now, then so be it.</p><p>And if <em> that </em> meant Jack had to wait a little longer for his answer, then so be it.</p><p>Because she wasn’t about to say another word until she could feel the phantom heat of Grace’s fire just one more time.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Then</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong> <em>“We are the ones that walk to fire</em> </strong>
  <br/>
  <strong> <em>And people say ‘Don’t touch’</em> </strong>
  <br/>
  <strong> <em>Yeah, people say ‘Don’t touch’</em> </strong>
  <br/>
  <strong> <em>We are the ones that never listen</em> </strong>
  <br/>
  <strong> <em>We can’t get burned enough</em> </strong>
  <br/>
  <strong> <em>We can’t get burned enough”</em> </strong>
</p><p>
  <span class="u"> <em> Then </em> </span>
</p><p>She was sick of New York. She needed a break. And not the kind of break that forced her to go into hiding all the way across the country to make sure Stan’s goons couldn’t touch her. This wasn’t the first time going through the motions of divorce--please, it was old hat by now--but it was definitely the hardest. This time, it was as if Stan had been actively going out of his way to make her life a living hell until she finally signed off on the admission that the last thirty years with him had been for nothing. Not that she would ever let anyone know how lonely it had gotten, how exhausting it had been to try to anticipate Stan’s next move. </p><p>She needed a distraction, something she could pour her energy into to forget about her own sorry state of affairs for a little while. She didn’t mean for that distraction to come in the form of Grace’s inevitable spiral into madness because of a stupid design conference in Los Angeles. She didn’t want Grace’s descent to be the thing that lifted her up. But she couldn’t stand the thought of her best girl going through that alone. So when the invitation eventually came, there was no other answer. She kept telling herself that she was only tagging along to save Grace from herself. Because it wouldn’t be the first time. Because saying the right thing before that design showcase in ‘99 pushed her into the role, and she didn’t mind that it did. Because she would keep saying the right thing, keep pulling her back from the precipice, for the rest of her days if it meant Grace would be okay. She never thought to question it; she was just taking care of her girl.</p><p>But the promise of an escape didn’t hurt, either.</p><p>Sure, the private jet and the insistence that everything go on her platinum card might have been a little much. But if they were going to do this, they were going to do this Karen’s way; she wasn't about to let Grace handle the arrangements only to be stuck in coach surrounded by screaming kids before being stuck in some budget hotel room down the street from the conference hotel. It wasn’t like she hadn’t ever gone to these lengths before. And she never knew Grace to be one who turned down free stuff. Which meant she could spoil the redhead as much as she wanted and get away with it. But as soon as they landed in California, Karen realized it was going to take a lot more than a champagne buzz 30,000 feet in the air to get Grace to calm her nerves.</p><p>There was something different about Grace once she got the L.A. air into her lungs. It wasn’t just the frenetic anxiety that came along with proving yourself to a group of judgmental strangers. That energy she knew like the back of her hand. That energy she knew how to respond to with any number of remedies that worked in the past. But this, right now, was the energy of a woman with a secret. A secret that she was dead set on keeping from the world. A secret that she may not have even let herself in on. A secret that Karen could swear made Grace nervous to be around her.</p><p>A secret that Karen had a hunch about. A secret she was certain she could confirm in no time.</p><p>It wasn’t completely outside the realm of possibility, if she was right. She and Grace had the least platonic platonic friendship in the world. Twenty years of gentle touches and quick kisses eventually had to lead to somewhere, and Karen would be lying if she said she never thought about that end destination; they had been walking towards that fire for so long that it was impossible to keep from wondering what it would feel like to burn under it. She bet it was a fire that would never go out, one that would keep her warm for the rest of her days. She wished that she would find out one day, to know what it was like to give herself to someone who knew every bit of her and didn’t hold it against her, someone who didn’t carry the constant threat of leaving with them everywhere, someone who could say they cared and mean it. There was just never any room for either of them to move past wondering and betting and wishing. But they were here now. This city was filled with people, but they still had all the space in the world to explore.</p><p>Maybe all they needed was some alone time a few thousand miles away from home to fan the flames.</p><p>Maybe this stupid design conference would be fun after all.</p><p>When they got to the hotel, Karen slipped the bellhop a twenty to take her luggage up to her suite and made a beeline for the bar, giving Grace the time she needed to settle into her own room before joining her for a drink. Her temporary Smitty crafted the perfect martini to kill time. Smooth enough to go down quick, making her ask for a refill before Grace had probably even thought to start making her way downstairs. Strong enough to relax her after that hellish drive from the airport to the hotel (seven billion people in the world, and they all seemed to be flocking to L.A., clogging the highway when all she needed was to be somewhere without wheels). And by the time she saw Grace out of the corner of her eye, weaving her way through designers and tourists, she was loose enough for the smile on her face to be genuine, for her enthusiasm to come naturally when she beckoned Grace to the stool beside her.</p><p>For the spark she felt when she took Grace’s hand to shock her in full force.</p><p>She’d felt this before. She must have. Because part of her was expecting it, and she had to know what it felt like if she knew to expect it. She just didn’t remember it feeling this intense. As if it was promising to lead somewhere. As if it was okay to get her hopes up. Even if she didn’t want to admit why she wanted to get her hopes up.</p><p>Even though Grace’s drink order told her where the redhead’s mind was at.</p><p>“I will take the biggest whiskey ginger you can give me.”</p><p>Lord. She must really be in crisis. Grace only asked for whiskey when she felt like the world was crashing down around her. Karen didn’t see what the big deal was about this conference: give a speech, answer some questions, have a celebratory drink, done. Seemed easy enough to her. But from the way Grace buried her head in her arms, she knew she was missing something that was making this trip a bonafide disaster for her girl. Karen hated to see her like this, drained of that confidence she exuded so easily back home, whenever she was in her element. Selling a potential client on a design. Defending her vision. Bringing a sketch to life. Giving people spaces they never want to leave. There hadn’t been a day in that office over the last twenty years when Karen hadn’t been immensely proud of her. It broke her heart every time she heard Grace dig herself into this hole of self-doubt. But Grace still held onto Karen’s hand like she wanted her assistant to pull her out of this. So Karen knew what she had to do.</p><p>She saw the way Grace started to relax in stages. Letting herself believe it when Karen told her she wasn’t a nobody. Letting herself laugh over the way she thought she got the gig she was asked to speak about in the first place. Letting herself entertain the thought that maybe her idea was what sold Eli Wolff on letting her have free rein over his hotel chain, because it sounded true in Karen’s voice. Because it <em> was </em> true, no matter whose voice it was in. Karen could tell her girl was already starting to feel like herself again. And with a brush of her fingertips along Grace’s cheek, she brought it all the way home. “Gracie, this is the victory lap. This is where you get the recognition you deserve. You have every right to stand up there and brag about yourself and what you did. So just do it.”</p><p>Grace looked stunned, like she didn’t know Karen was capable of something so sweet, so honest. Like there haven’t been moments like this peppered throughout their twenty years together. Like she wanted to ask if she heard right, but didn’t want to discover that her mind had been playing tricks on her. But her curiosity won out; it always did. “Did you really mean that?” she asked, her voice surprisingly small when she finally found it.</p><p>“Of course I did, honey.”</p><p>“No, not what you just said. I mean before. When you said I wasn’t a nobody.”</p><p>In that moment, Karen wanted to tell her the truth. That she had been the most important person in her life from the moment she walked into the office, for more reasons than she could count. That she would always be her favorite somebody. That sometimes she wondered what it would be like to give her heart to her favorite somebody, how much sweeter life could be. How she never would have let these thoughts swim in her head if Grace wasn’t worth it. Karen wanted to give her all of these things. Until she realized it would be better to ease into it. “Gracie...you’ve known me for twenty years. You should know by now that I only associate with the best.” And then, just as the air around them was beginning to shift, she leaned in. “You need to learn how to give yourself more credit.”</p><p>She could kiss her right now, guide her by the chin, brush against her lips, pass it off as one more friendly act of comfort in their history until Grace gave her the green light to call it what it was. Grace’s stare was cutting right through her like a dare. And she was never one to bail on a dare. This was their time. They were anonymous here; they were free. They could finally explore the boundaries of their relationship that were always meant to be bent, twisted, completely shattered. They wouldn’t have to question it, they wouldn’t have to feel bad about it. They could just be. Karen’s fingers twitched on the bar, desperate to trace the path along Grace’s jawline that led to her kiss crashing against the redhead’s skin. But before she could move, Grace pulled back, shifting her gaze away, unable to meet Karen’s eye.</p><p>“I think maybe I should go upstairs. I should practice my speech a little bit before it gets to be too late.”</p><p>Karen hoped that Grace didn’t notice the way she faltered. She had been so sure of her read of the situation that she didn’t prepare herself for anything other than knowing what Grace’s kiss tasted like when she meant it. But she wasn’t about to force it. She wasn’t about to do something her girl didn’t want. So she masked her disappointment and settled their tab. “I guess you’re right. Come on, I’ll walk you to your room.”</p><p>The silence was unbearable, from the bar to the elevator to their floor. Karen didn’t know what to do with this. She didn’t know how to fix it. Clearly, they had found a boundary that Grace wasn’t ready to cross just yet. But she swore with everything she had that Grace sounded reluctant to kill the mood, like she regretted it while she was saying it. Maybe it was just the setting that made her wary, too many people around to get a peek at something so private. Maybe Grace wanted to be alone with her. Maybe she would be a little more daring once they were behind closed doors. Maybe there was hope.</p><p>But before she knew it, they reached Grace’s hotel room. And nothing had changed.</p><p>Well. That was that. Maybe Karen was just wrong. Maybe alone time a few thousand miles away meant nothing after all. Maybe she couldn’t read Grace the way she had always been so confident that she could. Maybe this conference was going to be just that, no more, but so much less than what she realized she wanted.</p><p>Maybe she should leave now before she made it worse.</p><p>She tried not to sound defeated when she told Grace that her door was open to her if she needed anything, turned to leave before the mask started to slip. Because really, Karen, what made you think she would ever want this? Take a good, hard look at the ones she’s loved in the time you’ve known her. Danny, Josh, Ben. Nathan. Leo, more than once for some inexplicable reason. Nick, Noah. The smattering of first dates that barely turned into seconds. In that long line of men, what made you think she would fall for the strange woman who made a poor excuse for an assistant? What made you think--</p><p>“Wait.”</p><p>Karen stopped in her tracks, turned to find a deadly serious look in the redhead’s eyes. For the first time in her life, she didn’t know what to say to her. They stayed there, frozen in time, neither one of them making a move, Grace seemingly losing her nerve the second she found it.</p><p>But then she reached for Karen’s hand, her touch an electric current that sent the same full-intensity sparks throughout the dark haired woman’s body. She took a fortifying breath as she inched closer to her assistant.</p><p>And all of the doubt that was lingering in Karen’s mind had disappeared.</p><p>All she wanted to do was ease Grace’s mind, even if the way she held her hand was setting her own on fire. She’d offer her another drink, she’d play the perfect audience while Grace ran through her speech. She’d give her the distraction she needed to put her mind a little more at ease. But by the time they settled into the suite and Grace stopped hiding behind the speech like it was the reason she was here to begin with, the air was still heavy with their close call at the bar. And Karen knew she had to say something. Something sincere, something that made her feel safe.</p><p>Something that she could pass off as making her feel better about the conference if it backfired.</p><p>Something that laid everything out on the table if it didn’t.</p><p>“You don’t need to be so nervous.”</p><p>Grace looked like a deer in the headlights, like she was stunned that Karen figured out her secret, like she had it locked away in the most impenetrable fortress, instead of letting it fly around in an open cage. But in the next second, Karen swore she saw a spark of fire in her eyes, the realization that she could have everything she wanted if she just put it into words burning brightly in her gaze. “I...I don’t know how to stop being nervous.”</p><p>Karen took a beat before letting her smirk come to play. “Just do what you want to do. It’ll be okay, I promise.”</p><p>“It...it’s more like...what I want <em> you </em> to do.”</p><p>This was it. This was the moment. The one all those long looks and brazen touches had been leading up to. The one where they could finally find out what it was like to put an answer to “What if?” The one where the answer was so much sweeter than any of the ones they could have guessed. Karen vibrated with the promise of it, desperate to take Grace all the way. But she wasn’t about to scare her off by being a little too eager. So she let her eyes fall to Grace’s lips, letting the redhead know her intentions. “So, maybe something like this…” she trailed off, bringing her into a gentle kiss, pulling away in slow motion to give Grace all the time in the world to back out if she wanted to.</p><p>Or ample opportunity to dive in.</p><p>“Something like <em> this.” </em> </p><p>Before Karen could prepare herself, Grace pulled her head first into a probing kiss, the blend of whiskey and relief on the redhead’s lips swimming directly to Karen’s head. It was all such a brilliant blur, a whirlwind that left her blindsided, grabbing onto Grace’s waist for something solid to steady herself on. The urgency on her girl’s tongue, in her fingertips, was almost too much for Karen to take. But once her mind caught up with her body, she knew exactly how to give Grace everything she wanted. She knew how to tease her, let her fingers walk down her spine and up her curves in one moment, pull away to leave her pleading for more in the next. She knew how to hold out just long enough to lead Grace to the edge, how to dive back in so that the waves would come crashing onto Grace’s shore. She knew how to give Grace the world.</p><p>She just didn’t realize what it would do to her to give it.</p><p>Because in all honesty, it had been years. Years since she touched someone and got any kind of response. Years since she touched someone she could truthfully say she loved. Years since she could say she wasn’t simply going through the motions, putting on a convincing enough show to leave her partner satisfied. Grace was far too special for that; she wouldn’t be able to handle it if this ended up being just another disappointment, for her girl, for herself. Letting Grace down would be letting the world down. But she heard the way Grace moaned, in surprise, in desire, in excitement, in hope. And she knew there was no mistaking it. One of the things she always loved most about the redhead was how terrible a liar she was; this was real.</p><p>Karen didn’t realize how starved she was for this. She felt it reverberate through her body every time Grace gasped, called out her name, begged her not to stop. It overwhelmed her senses, drove her wild, made her wonder if she would come before Grace did. And before she could collect herself, the redhead grabbed hold of her wrist, slid it between her legs in an unexpected burst of control. She felt how wet Grace was. She saw the way Grace smiled through her bliss. She heard Grace’s nearly breathless words, as if it took every last bit of strength she had to string them together: “Karen...that’s what you do to me.” And she realized she didn’t want to ease Grace’s mind after all.</p><p>She wanted to drive her straight out of it.</p><p>The thing about boundaries was that it always felt wrong to break them, even when you knew it was the right thing to do. Karen never let her thoughts go this far before, never imagined Grace would ever be this bare underneath her, never imagined she would ever be inside her, never imagined a twist of her fingers could make her writhe in rapture, never imagined she would ever make her come. Never imagined she would be holding her breath, waiting for Grace to tell her that it was as thrilling for her as it was for Karen. Even though no one had ever cried out like that because of her touch before. Even though she had never heard her name tangled up in such strong desire before. She needed to be sure that it wasn’t just some late-night delusion. She needed to be sure that they wouldn’t have to piece together the boundary they shattered tonight in the early hours of the morning. But Grace’s silence proved louder when it followed those cries. And it threw Karen’s mind into overdrive.</p><p>“Are you okay?” she asked, for Grace’s peace of mind or her own, she couldn’t be sure.</p><p>She expected a yes. She expected a no. She expected a complicated “I’m not sure” that they would have to unpack well into the morning. She never expected Grace’s laughter to be the perfect answer. But when it hit the air, she nearly buckled under the relief she felt. “Yeah,” Grace murmured in between breaths. “I’m great. But I think I would be better if you took me to the bedroom.” </p><p>Grace’s laughter was contagious. “Honey, I haven’t been up here until now,” she smiled. “I have no idea where the bedroom is.”</p><p>Right then, something inside the redhead changed. Like she finally found the version of herself she was meant to be buried underneath the versions everyone expected to see. Like she was finally going to let that version come to play. She glowed as she arched her brow and let her voice drop to its lowest register. “So let’s figure it out together. You know...so I can properly thank you for your generosity.”</p><p>Any uncertainty on Karen’s part, any nervousness on Grace’s, disappeared the second the dark haired woman pulled the redhead off the couch and felt her crash into her arms. That indescribable collision that pushed her into a new light. This freer side of a woman who had already captivated her twenty years ago, a side she couldn’t wait to get to know better. She wanted this. She deserved this. They both did. They deserved to let go, they deserved to explore. They deserved to feel something good. They deserved to be touched by someone who wanted to memorize every inch of them. And if the look in Grace’s eyes was anything to go by, Karen was going to spend the night under the heat of her gaze. She couldn’t wait for it to warm up the parts of her soul, her heart, that she thought would be forever trapped inside a solid block of ice. She couldn’t wait to surrender to whatever it was Grace had in store for her. She couldn’t wait to feel something good.</p><p>She couldn’t wait to feel.</p><p>This was what it always should have been. This was what was missing from every other person who she thought she loved. Letting her hand slip down to the small of her girl’s back knowing it would be a perfect fit, ready to pull her into their next chapter. Being blindsided by a swipe of her tongue. Pressing her lips against her girl’s, letting them travel along her neck, her shoulders as they fumbled around the suite trying to find the bed. Laughing every time they came up empty. Knowing they were about to cross a line. Acting like they didn’t care. Leaving a trail of clothing in their wake, just in case they ever needed to find the path back to square one. Knowing she wasn’t going to go back there any time soon. This was how it was supposed to be; Karen was sure of it.</p><p>Life was already so much better on the other side of Grace’s secret.</p><p> </p><p>**********</p><p> </p><p>When they finally found the bedroom, the atmosphere changed. The echoes of their laughter had died down, leaving only the memory of the way Grace had just bent to Karen’s touch. The fire in Grace’s eyes illuminated the room. Her touch was fueled by a serious sensuality that Karen had never experienced before. Like this meant more to Grace than just a fling, a once and done before the sun came up. Like this meant more to Grace than anything else. Like Grace could not survive unless she gave Karen everything she had just been given. It sent shivers of anticipation through Karen’s body that were so intense, she thanked the god she didn’t really believe in when they fell down on the bed, relieved that she landed there before her legs inevitably buckled. She felt the weight of Grace’s body on top of her and wrapped her arms around the redhead’s waist to keep her this close, no air between them as the heat of Grace’s kiss scorched her. She felt herself melting deeper and deeper into the mattress, ready to give herself up completely to Grace’s whims.</p><p>But then Grace started to slip out of her hold. And then the chill of the air where her redhead should be hit Karen’s skin. And she couldn’t believe Grace had the audacity to simply <em> stop. </em></p><p>“Honey…” she whimpered, her impatient arms aching for the woman who was just out of reach. “What’s this? What’s happening? Where are you going?”</p><p>“Shhh…” Grace stood over her with a smirk. She knew exactly what she was doing. This was her game, these were her rules. She was going to get what she wanted. She bent down to within an inch of Karen’s lips like she was moving to kiss her, only to pull back in a tease when Karen lifted her head to meet her. “Stay there,” she commanded, low and husky before she backed out of the room, leaving Karen speechless.</p><p>It was incredible, how quickly the redhead gained the confidence to be in control once she got what she wanted. Karen had seen it a handful of times before, whenever Grace was able to win over a particularly stubborn client and felt bold enough to insist on the more experimental designs that she actually believed in; once that woman had the reins in her hands, once that gleam in her eye showed you she realized what she was capable of, there was no stopping her. But to be Grace’s focus, to be the one she had plans for...it sent a surge through Karen’s core as she waited for her boss’ return. In the twenty years she had known Grace Adler, Karen couldn’t remember a time when she couldn’t trace her train of thought, when she couldn’t figure out where Grace was taking them before they got there. But now, for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out what Grace had in store.</p><p>And she had to admit, it turned her on.</p><p>It was bliss, being thrust into the unknown like this just after she had been in complete control. She was overwhelmed by it, losing her mind over the way the twinge between her legs became more and more intense. Before she could stop herself, her hand started to wander down her torso, and she took a deep breath as her touch hit the waist of her panties. She wanted to wait for Grace to come back from wherever the hell she ran off to. Good <em> lord, </em> she wanted to wait; she didn’t realize how badly she craved the redhead’s tongue against her body, how badly she wanted to know the turns those fingers would take inside of her. But at this point, she wasn’t sure she could hold on much longer. If she just gave herself a little release right now, just to keep herself from diving over the edge completely, she would have a chance to recover before Grace came back. She would still be able to give herself up to whatever it was Grace would do to her; overstimulation wasn’t in her vocabulary. Slowly, teasing herself into more of a frenzy, she let her hand slide underneath the lace, sighing as she prepared to succumb to her own touch.</p><p>Until she heard a voice.</p><p>“What do you think you’re doing?”</p><p>Karen froze, her fingertips barely starting to graze the skin underneath her panties. She lifted her head to find Grace in the doorway, taking one step closer, and then another, as she rolled the tiny chilled bottle of vodka she had clearly grabbed from the mini bar in between her hands. The drink she asks for when she’s feeling a little playful. The drink that let Karen know Grace’s world was no longer crashing down around her. She felt her heart match the speed of her mind as she tried to figure out exactly what Grace was planning to do with it. “Waiting for you,” she murmured carefully, trying not to give herself away too quickly. “What, did you decide you needed another drink after all?”</p><p>Grace didn’t answer the question, simply shrugged as a tease before she pulled their focus back to where it needed to be. “I’ll be damned if you’re gonna get off without me tonight.” She set the bottle down on the nightstand before leaning in to plunge her lips into Karen’s, coaxing a low moan out of the dark haired woman before pulling away. “Let someone take care of <em> you </em> for a change,” she whispered, sliding Karen’s panties off deftly, throwing them over her shoulder as she climbed onto the bed.</p><p>Any other time, Karen would have felt the weight of what Grace had so casually tossed to her, would have lost her breath trying to defend a past that was indefensible. But the second she felt the redhead straddling her bare hips, the contact decimated everything swimming in her head that could keep her from the here and now. All she wanted was to taste the way Grace’s desire blended with hers, felt a magnetic pull lift her from the mattress to meet Grace’s lips with a hunger she had never experienced before. She had faked it so many times over the years. With Stan. With Lyle. With Malcolm. She played like she craved them until she believed her own lies, told herself time and time again that it was as good as it was going to get. She got used to it, convinced herself she could live with it, resigned herself to a life of never getting close enough to the fire. She didn’t think Grace would be the one to fan the flames.</p><p>Then again, maybe she should have known that the girl with the wildfire hair would be the one who allowed her to burn. And no one told her how brilliant it felt to burn.</p><p>Each kiss pressed against her lips, her skin, was a spark she felt throughout her entire body. Grace hadn’t even done much yet, just let her kiss travel down Karen’s neck to the spot she couldn’t have known made the dark haired woman weak with the slightest touch. But Karen was stunned that it could truly be like this. She didn’t have to play like she craved her until the lie fit. She didn’t have to fake it. Grace took care of her, gave her what she wanted without a second thought, smiled against her skin every time her touch drew a moan out of her. They could have stayed like this forever; Karen was certain Grace had the power to make her come without going any further.</p><p>Suddenly, Grace lifted her head from Karen’s neck to grab the mini bar vodka from the nightstand, sat back on her haunches as she dangled the bottle above Karen’s body. “Do you trust me?” she asked, her voice wickedly low as she twisted the top off, clearly reveling in the way she let her assistant linger in the unknown.</p><p>Karen couldn’t hesitate if she wanted to. “Always.”</p><p>Grace let the cap fall to the floor as her eyes traveled the map of Karen’s porcelain curves. Her gaze exploded against Karen’s skin, made the twinge between her legs morph into a throb as they roamed her body. When they finally locked on Karen’s stare again, the dark haired woman could see the light of a plan shine in them. It was a shine that blinded her to anything that wasn’t that stare, those eyes, that mystery.</p><p>It was a shine that blinded her to the way the redhead tipped the bottle over her, drizzling a tiny river of vodka along her torso.</p><p>Karen arched her back at the contact, gasping at how thrilling it felt. But before she had a chance to unscramble her mind, Grace’s tongue caught the booze at her navel, following the path up her torso. Her “Oh!” of surprise melted into a husky, drawn out moan as the chill of the vodka gave way to the heat of Grace’s breath against her skin. She plunged her fingers through the redhead’s wildfire locks, guiding Grace up her body slowly, so that she could savor the way the swirling in her core got more and more intense by the second. She couldn’t believe <em> this </em> was what she had been missing out on, never taking any of those kisses and lingering touches over the years all the way. This could have been her normal, someone who could surprise her in the most breathtaking ways, someone whose fingertips set off fireworks and lips carried the secrets of the universe in their kiss. Karen couldn’t remember the last time somebody understood her like this, couldn’t remember the last time someone cared to give her what she needed.</p><p>She couldn’t remember the last time someone stopped in the middle of it all, leaving her desperately aching for more.</p><p>Maybe it was hesitation, Grace wanting to be sure that Karen liked what was being done to her before she kept going. This was so new that Karen wouldn’t blame her for questioning her instincts. But there was a fresh boldness in Grace that could overshadow even the strongest of doubts. And it made Karen realize that this was Grace getting her back, for the way she drew things out earlier, for teasing her, making her wait for the payoff. She should have expected it; it was foolish not to. But Grace was driving her out of her mind over something she didn’t think to see coming. She let out a wordless whimper, making Grace lift her head from her resting place between Karen’s breasts to meet her gaze. “What was that?” Grace teased.</p><p>Karen tried to speak, but could only whisper “Honey…”</p><p>It was the invitation Grace needed to milk this for all it was worth. She let a tsk escape her lips before she shook her head. “Come on, Kare,” she drew out. “I can’t take care of you if I don’t know what you want.” She arched her brow, inviting Karen to beg her to keep going. And Karen had so many words for what she wanted Grace to do to her. But the energy in her core was already frenetic. And the way Grace’s stare pierced through her jumbled them so much that she couldn’t even tell what they were in the first place. So she managed the only one she could put a voice to.</p><p>“More.”</p><p>The redhead bit down on her lip, unable to control her smirk as she hovered above Karen with the bottle still in hand. She tipped it in a tease over the same spot she did before, and again above her collarbone (good <em> lord, </em> what Karen would give to feel Grace’s tongue dance the length of it right now). She dangled the bottle over Karen’s lips, watched as her assistant parted them instinctively, let a few drops splash onto her tongue. And with the last bit of liquor left, Grace emptied the bottle along Karen’s breasts, her mouth enveloping Karen’s nipple as the dark haired woman’s body rose to meet her.</p><p><em> “Fuck,” </em> Karen sighed, clutching the sheets and throwing her head back over the way a flick of Grace’s tongue could send such an intense wave through her entire being.</p><p>“Honey,” she murmured, no small feat. “I can’t hold on much longer. I need…” She trailed off, the turn Grace took around the curve of her other breast obliterating any other thought in her head. She worked like hell to get the words out, but no matter how hard she tried, she could only manage to sound like a broken, blissed out record. “I need...I need...I need…”</p><p>“Shhhh…” Grace pulled away from Karen’s breast to meet her plea with a kiss, her tongue swiping away all of the words Karen thought she needed. “Don’t worry,” she said, her voice low from the thrill. “I’ve got you.”</p><p>She lowered her hand until she could brush her fingertips along Karen’s outer thigh.</p><p>She drew waves along Karen’s skin like she knew the exact shape the waves in her core were taking.</p><p>She teased Karen’s folds like what she truly needed would forever be just out of reach.</p><p>And without once taking her eyes away from Karen’s, she swirled her fingers along the dark haired woman’s clit.</p><p><em> “Gracie,” </em> Karen cried out, the redhead’s name bouncing off the walls of the bedroom as she rode the waves of pressure Grace crafted between her legs. “Honey, don’t stop.” She heard Grace’s breath hitch and give way to a victorious moan when she discovered how effortlessly she could slide herself in and out of Karen, like she was rightfully proud of how wet she just made a woman who could rarely be moved. Karen tried her damndest to keep her eyes on Grace, to watch her as she basked in Karen’s ecstasy. But every time she thought she knew the next twist, the next turn Grace’s fingers would take, she would get completely blindsided. Grace’s finger slowly tracing her clit like she wanted to draw this out as long as she possibly could, inching Karen closer to the edge. Grace quickening her pace like she wanted to push Karen off the cliff. Back and forth like she couldn’t make up her mind, even though Karen knew this was all part of her plan. Proving that she could take care of Karen.</p><p>Letting Karen know it was okay to let go.</p><p>Soon enough, that unmistakable surge swelled in her core with no signs of subsiding. And before she gave herself to it, Karen made a desperate reach for Grace, pulling her in close until there was no space left between them, wanting to feel completely covered by her. She pressed her mouth against Grace’s shoulder, muffling her cries as she came against the redhead’s touch. She went limp on the mattress, expecting Grace to pull away now that she was finished. But Grace hovered peacefully above her as she took the sight of the ravished dark haired woman in. She reached up, tracing the curve of Grace’s smile, unable to believe the vision she was looking up at was real. And as her touch came to rest against her girl’s cheek, she watched Grace take her hand from between her legs to lick her fingers clean, the redhead’s eyes never once leaving the dark haired woman’s.</p><p>Karen felt so gloriously spent in that moment, but she swore to god she was close to coming again just off of the sight of that. She needed to know what it tasted like, she and Grace blended together like that. She slid her hand to the back of Grace’s neck, pulled her down to her lips to get high off of the way her thrill mixed with Grace’s audacity. She couldn’t help but let out a soft moan over how sweet they tasted together, new and familiar all at once. This was where she wanted to live for the rest of her days, under Grace’s body, under Grace’s spell. Fueled by Grace’s kiss. And in that moment, she wholeheartedly believed she could stay like this forever.</p><p>Grace pulled away with what felt like reluctance, hovering above her like a wildfire angel as she smiled. Karen parted her lips to speak, wanting to put words to the way her girl made her feel, wanting the right words to break the silence. She could have said a million things that would have bared her soul. Like how the weight of Grace’s body against hers was the only thing that could rid her of the weight of the world. Like how she had never seen her future so clearly as she did when she looked into Grace’s eyes. Like how she felt like she was home for the first time in her life. All of those things were waiting for her to find her voice.</p><p>None of those things realized that it wasn’t her voice that was lost, but her courage to split herself open like that.</p><p>So instead, she took a breath and kept it true to the woman Grace knew her to be. The one who didn’t show all her cards during the first round. The one who deflects as a reflex. The one who can pass off her mask for the real deal. “You know,” she smirked once her breath began to even out, “for a woman who insists she prefers to just lie there, you sure know how to make a move.”</p><p>Grace’s laughter filled the room before she slid her body to the other side of the bed, her hand against Karen’s heart as she came to rest. “I guess you’re the only one who knows how to move me.”</p><p>They listened to the way it filled the room, settling into each other’s arms, woven together underneath the covers that Grace had pulled over them. Karen loved the way it buzzed in her ear, letting her know that this was real, this was true. She was going to wake up in the morning and find herself still tangled up in her. She was going to open her eyes with the sunrise and see Grace sleeping there beside her, or see her already awake, smiling, waiting for Karen to join the new day with her. She was going to wake up and feel at peace. She was going to wake up and feel the closest thing to hope she’s known. Because she was going to wake up next to Grace. And Grace was in a completely different league from anyone else she tried to love. Because Grace cared about her more than anyone else she tried to love.</p><p>She wasn’t quite sure what this night meant for them. Not yet.</p><p>But something told her it was just the beginning.</p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <em> <strong>“You’ve got to take me to that place</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong>You let your guard down, yeah</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong>You let your guard down, yeah”</strong> </em>
</p><p>It wasn’t much, but it was the best she could do under the time crunch. Something to celebrate Grace’s success, the smallest of congratulations. Something to let her know how proud she was. She knew she ran the risk of Grace noticing she was gone, of Grace coming back to the suite before Karen had a chance to finish, disappointed that her assistant bailed on one of the most important things she had ever done. Even though Karen didn’t bail, would never dream of bailing. She made sure she had a front row seat down there, made sure she was in Grace’s sightline in case the redhead needed that extra boost. She watched as Grace nailed the speech she so nervously practiced for her the night before (no matter that it wasn’t the speech that had made her nervous). She beamed at the sound of applause surrounding them, knowing it was all for her girl. She joined in, becoming the cheerleader Grace brought her here to be, putting her whole heart into it. But once the room settled and the Q&amp;A began, she knew she had her chance. She waited until Grace’s eyes were locked on the first designer to ask some long-winded question she was certain she was only pretending to follow, and she sneaked out of the conference as quietly as she could before making a beeline back to their suite.</p><p>Grace might try to dismiss it, try to tell her it was too much when Karen knew a bottle of champagne and chocolate cake waiting for her when she came back clearly wasn’t enough. But Karen also knew that her girl never turned down a good piece of cake; it went against Grace’s entire belief system. So she was golden.</p><p>Besides...she could do whatever she wanted for Grace, now that they set the rules.</p><p>Karen surprised herself when she proposed them to Grace; she didn’t have anything planned, would have gladly let this keep going long after they flew back to Manhattan. If she had any real say in the matter, last night would have been the first in a long line of inevitable nights. But she knew how Grace operated. She knew the redhead would be more willing to give up her inhibitions this way. Most of all, she knew the longstanding joke that to date Will or Grace is to date Will <em> and </em> Grace had so much truth to it that it was pointless to keep swearing it was a joke; the second Will found out about them, it would be over. No matter that he and Karen had been friends for decades. No matter that she cared about Grace more than she had ever cared about anyone that stumbled into her life when she least expected it. No matter that enough time had gone by to prove to everyone around her that she could never leave Grace even if she wanted to. She knew that her dynamic with Will would cloud his judgment, that even though they were friends, theirs was a friendship of pushed buttons and sharpened tongues. He would use those pushed buttons and sharpened tongues against her. He would make Grace question what they had even if it was what she wanted. Grace would decide it wasn’t worth it to risk her friendship with Will for something she only had for a couple of days.</p><p>It would end no matter what they did; of this, she was certain. She simply preferred to see the end coming, if she could help it.</p><p>It didn’t leave much time for the whole world to change. But it left time for her to say the things she always wanted to say. It left time for her to be selfish, to rush back downstairs and pull her girl from the conference and do the things she wanted to do for her, with her, to her. To push her up against an elevator wall. To slide a hand up her skirt. To hear her breath hitch, watch her eyes snap shut to succumb to the touch, and feel such a stimulating sense of pride because of it. To not care one bit if they have an audience. To run through the halls with wild abandon until they reached home base. To let this hotel be their playground. </p><p>That was what they had time for. And Karen would gladly take what she could get.</p><p>“Oh my god, there’s cake.”</p><p>Good <em> lord, </em> Grace was cute when her eyes grew wide like that. How much of it was for the surprise of it all and how much of it was strictly for the cake, Karen couldn’t be sure, but she loved the way it all blended together as Grace made her way to the room service cart. She just had to touch her, feel some of that energy against her skin, warm herself against this wildfire girl. “Honey, don’t get mad,” she said, sliding her arms around Grace’s waist and bringing her close. “But I slipped out during the Q&amp;A when you weren’t looking my way to make sure this would be here when you came back.”</p><p>“How can I be mad when there’s cake?” Karen let out a breathless laugh, let it linger until the air around them felt a little more weighted and Grace’s voice sounded a little more serious. “You seriously did this for me?”</p><p>“Well, yeah. Gracie, you did something wonderful today. You should be celebrated.”</p><p>Karen was starting to let her guard down, she could tell. As much as her instincts told her to keep herself protected. As much as she realized it would make it harder to leave all of this behind. She couldn’t help giving herself up to this girl. She spent her entire life priding herself on being fearless, being able to take on the world without so much as breaking a sweat. She worked so hard, for so long, to build up that wall that she was positive it could never be destroyed. It was part of the reason why so many people left over the years; they fall in love with the mystery, convinced they can crack it, until enough time goes by for them to realize she’ll never give up her secrets. The mystery stops being sexy and starts being boring. And without the mystery piquing their interest, there’s no reason to stay.</p><p>But then Grace walked in, finding the weak spot in the foundation and plowing through the wall so that every last brick came tumbling down. And instead of fleeing the scene, she helped Karen navigate the piles of debris left in its wake. Like she wasn’t going to leave her. Like the mystery wasn’t what was keeping her here. Like she loved the woman behind the wall, not the wall itself. Like she loved her at all.</p><p>It scared Karen a bit, being this vulnerable. It was all too much.</p><p>She kind of liked being scared. She kind of liked that it was all too much.</p><p>But she wasn’t sure she was ready to tell Grace yet.</p><p>Grace couldn’t know the thoughts racing through her head right now. Karen knew that if her eyes gave her away, Grace couldn’t see it, with her gaze laser focused on her celebratory dessert. But it was as if she could sense it anyway. Like the air needed to be a little bit lighter. Like the reasons why they slept together last night needed to be a little less real. And she came up with the perfect distraction.</p><p>“Can we eat the cake in bed?”</p><p>Karen let out a sigh of relief she knew Grace wouldn’t be able to hear. This she could handle right now. This she could play off of. She thanked Grace for the unintentional assist as she threw on a smirk, sectioned off a small piece of her slice with her fork and playfully fed it to Grace. She let the redhead’s soft, low <em> “Mmm…” </em> fill her before she answered. “We can do whatever you want in bed.” And with that, she took her cake and the bottle of champagne, and beckoned Grace to the bedroom.</p><p>By the time Grace walked in, Karen had already stripped down and was shrugging into the pink silk robe she was in this morning, ready to never leave this suite again. Karen watched as Grace set her cake and their glasses on the nearest nightstand and grabbed the blue robe Karen had laid out on the bed for her to follow suit. They climbed into bed, Karen reaching for the glasses so she could pour the champagne, waiting for Grace to settle in against the pillows to hand her a drink. They toasted to Grace’s successful speech, savored their dessert in quiet companionship. Karen was content to just stay like this, here with her girl, stealing a few glances here and there, convincing herself that they were the only two women in Los Angeles. And she would have, too, if she hadn’t noticed the way Grace was staring at her the last couple of times she stole a glance, a smile growing across the redhead’s face.</p><p>It wasn’t the worst thing in the world, feeling the focus of Grace’s gaze on her. She would have just let it be, warm herself up under her watch. But in the twenty years she had known Grace Adler, she had never before seen her get distracted enough to completely disregard a perfectly good piece of cake. And she couldn’t help herself.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>Grace blushed as Karen caught her in the act, shook her head to try to dismiss it. Karen couldn’t believe how gorgeous she looked with a little more color to her cheeks. “Nothing. Sorry, I just...I missed seeing you like this.”</p><p>“Like what?”</p><p>“Like you finally pushed the weight of the world off your shoulders. You seem...I don’t know, happier since we got here. I know Stan put you through a lot in the last year.”</p><p>She said it so quietly, so plainly, that it would have bowled Karen over if she wasn’t already sitting down. Karen always thought her poker face was impenetrable, always thought she had mastered the art of necessary deception. The most ridiculous lie can sound like the truth if you say it the right way. The most meaningless reassurance can be taken at face value with the right smile, the right look in your eye. It was an art form, and she had mastered it. Or so she thought.</p><p>Karen should have known that Grace would be the one to see right through it, to see right through her. The more she thought about it, the more she realized the poker face only worked when the person you’re shielding yourself from doesn’t pay enough attention to pinpoint the lies that kept up appearances. But Grace knew her better than she knew herself sometimes. Grace could see the hell this divorce put her through, even when she didn’t want to admit that there was hell to be put through. Grace could see how tired she was of pretending she didn’t care, that everything was fine, that it didn’t matter what happened or how long it would take to get through it. Grace saw how badly she needed a place to rest her head. Normally, she would hate how exposed she felt.</p><p>But she loved how safe it was to be seen by her.</p><p>“Yeah, well…” she started after a moment. “If all of that was what led me here, maybe it was worth it.”</p><p>The warmth in Grace’s eyes grew as she set her plate on the nightstand and burrowed into the dark haired woman’s arms. “So you don’t regret letting me stay here with you?”</p><p>Karen didn’t dare tell her anything but the truth. “Gracie, this was the first good decision I’ve made in years.”</p><p>Grace pressed a kiss to her neck in the sweetest response. “I’m sorry you wasted money on a second hotel room,” she mumbled against Karen’s gardenia skin.</p><p>“Oh, honey, come on. You know I don’t care about the money.” She couldn’t help herself; the weight of their situation started to get a little too real, she kept trying to tell herself that this trip was supposed to be fun, a quick getaway to do the things they couldn’t do. Something inside her was begging her to make the air lighter. “But, if you’re really feeling guilty about it, you’re free to go back,” she teased. “I mean, it’s not like you’re <em> that </em> far away from me over there, so it’s really no--”</p><p>“Forty-five steps.”</p><p>Forty-five steps? Did she hear that right? “What did you just say?”</p><p>“It’s forty-five steps from my door to yours.” Grace let out a soft laugh over Karen’s stunned silence. “I got nervous when you led me here last night, and I guess I thought that if I counted the steps, it would be a good distraction. It wasn’t.” She reached up to trace Karen’s jawline with her finger. “I’m glad it wasn’t.”</p><p>“Well, I’m glad you decided to stay. Forty-five steps might as well be a million miles away.”</p><p>“Sure feels like it now.”</p><p>This could have been the moment. The one where they threw caution to the wind. The one where they destroyed the rules. The one where they decided to give each other what they deserved no matter what anyone else thought. The one where they realized this, right here, was the best thing either of them had ever done, and they refused to give it up for anything. They had the key that opened that door; they could run through it and never look back. All they had to do was say the word.</p><p>But Karen couldn’t bring herself to do it yet. So she did what she did best.</p><p>She deflected.</p><p>“So...how many steps do you think it is from this bed to the bath?”</p><p>Grace arched her brow, the corner of her lips crooked into a smirk. “Why don’t we find out together?” she murmured, brushing her lips against Karen’s before sliding off the mattress and holding out her hand for the dark haired woman to take, ready to lead her into the bathroom. Karen couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Not even twenty-four hours ago, Grace was the one to nervously take her hand, to weave their fingers together as she gathered up her courage to bypass her own hotel room for the suite; Karen remembered giving her hand a squeeze to put her mind at ease, let her know that she would be safe, that no matter what happened from that point on, it was going to be okay. But something changed in the redhead when she finally realized she had nothing to worry about. Something flipped the switch. And now Grace was the one to take Karen’s hand and give it a squeeze, not of reassurance, but of encouragement. Now, Grace proved she could play. Now, Grace liked to take the reins. Now, Grace was embracing a side of herself that thrilled Karen to no end.</p><p>Karen thought back to last night, what Grace had said after taking so much satisfaction in making her come: <em> I guess you’re the only one who knows how to move me. </em> The idea that this version of Grace was only meant for her overpowered every other thought in her mind. She didn’t care about counting steps. She didn’t care about nerves. She didn’t care about consequences.</p><p>She didn’t care about anything at all that wasn’t the woman currently pulling her into the other room, turning the air around them into electricity.</p><p>Once Grace led her into the bathroom, Karen turned the water on in the bathtub that looked like it could have fit the entire world inside. She loosened the belt of Grace’s robe before she started to slowly slide it off of her girl’s shoulders, her lips brushing against Grace’s newly exposed skin. Grace sighed as the robe fell to the floor in a waterfall of blue silk, her fingers woven through Karen’s hair like she was trying to keep her assistant’s kiss warm against her collarbone for as long as she could. Grace backed herself against the sink like she was preparing herself for the overwhelming need that laced their actions in this suite last night, in the elevator this afternoon. It was all they knew of each other, it was what Grace expected. But Karen wanted to take it slow. She wanted to surprise her. She wanted to give another side of herself to Grace, the way Grace gave her this version of herself that moves, that plays, that takes the reins.</p><p>She wanted to worship Grace in the way she deserved.</p><p>Karen shrugged out of her robe and slowly lowered herself down onto her knees, her lips tracing a path from Grace’s chest to her stomach that allowed her to kiss as much of her girl’s body as she could until she hit the tile floor. She let her hands glide along Grace’s thighs, reveling in the way her moan blended into the rush of water filling the tub. Her touch traveled around to Grace’s ass, fingertips brushing against her skin, and she could feel Grace’s body give as she threw her head back. It took everything Karen had not to pull her down to the floor, get her off before the tub was even half full. It would be so easy to give into the urgency they felt last night, the urgency still swimming in her core, telling her to act fast before the fire faded, before they ran out of time. But the fire burned just as brightly when the sun came up. And as long as she had her hands on Grace’s body, it made her think they could slow time down to a standstill. They <em> could </em> slow time down to a standstill. They were in control now. They finally found what they had been looking for. They could stay in this place, where the rules didn’t matter.</p><p>They could be like this forever, if they wanted to. And she wanted to.</p><p>Grace made her want to believe in forever.</p><p>Karen froze when that realization hit her, her kiss pressed to Grace’s stomach until she turned to rest her cheek against the redhead’s skin, holding her close like she needed to steady herself. She never wanted to give herself up to forever before. Even though some version of forever was buried in the vows she took each time she got married. Even though she vowed forever to those men without a second thought, in front of witnesses who never thought to stop the lie before it was too late. She knew the way those men worked, and she knew the game they played; “Forever” was a hollow word, something to throw around that didn’t mean anything but made the one who caught it happy all the same. She never thought it actually held any truth.</p><p>Until now.</p><p>Devil. Of course this was her luck. The one time forever was something to hold on to was the one time she resolved to end things before they truly got started. The one person who held it was the one person she couldn’t hold again once they set foot in Manhattan. Not like this. Not the way she wanted to. When she came up with their Cinderella rules, she was convinced she was making it easier for Grace; she didn’t give any thought to what it would be like for her to go on with her own everyday life knowing the redhead like she did now. Knowing the ways to make Grace sigh, moan, cry out, without ever being able to do anything about it. Knowing the ways Grace left her speechless, left her breathless, without ever being able to feel it. Knowing Grace had forever in her hands, but it would always be just out of reach. Karen wasn’t sure she could handle letting all of that go.</p><p>Karen wasn’t sure she could handle letting <em> her </em> go.</p><p>Suddenly, she felt Grace start to stroke her hair softly, bringing her back to reality, making her wonder how long she had been out. “Kare? You okay?”</p><p>Cripes. Don’t pull yourself away, Karen. Not when there’s still time. Shake it off. Worry about it later. Be here with her now. Because this moment is all that matters.</p><p>“Yeah, honey. I’m perfect.” Karen brushed her lips against Grace’s thigh before gently weaving her fingers through the curls between her girls legs. She heard the way Grace sighed to her touch and looked up at her with hope in her eyes. Hope that she wasn’t making this up. Hope that she could still take Grace to a place of sheer bliss if she took it slow. “Can I?” she asked.</p><p>Grace met her gaze and smiled, spread her legs just enough to let Karen take her. “Always,” she murmured.</p><p>Karen leaned in and slowly drew her tongue along Grace’s folds, wanting to see how long Grace could hold her moan in her mouth before she had to cry out for more. She felt her girl’s thighs twitch against her in anticipation, angling her hips to try to get closer to her tongue, all of it sending waves to Karen’s own core that were getting harder to ignore. And as if those same waves were crashing onto Grace’s shores, the redhead finally let her whimper escape, begging Karen to go deeper. The dark haired woman parted Grace’s lips and dipped her tongue into her opening, nearly faltering the second she heard Grace gasp at the contact. Grace’s palms slapped against the marble of the sink like she needed something solid to hold onto as her hips tried in vain to follow the rhythm of the circles Karen was tracing along her clit. Karen grabbed onto Grace’s thighs as she turned up the pressure, her tongue swirling steadily as Grace’s breathing grew shorter and shorter, getting so lost in the way her girl tasted that she didn’t realize she started drawing her nails against Grace’s skin until she heard a choked off moan fill the room.</p><p>“Don’t stop,” Grace exhaled, her legs starting to buckle under the turn of Karen’s tongue. Karen knew she was close to the edge; she had only known this part of Grace for a short time but was so sure she knew this woman’s body better than she had known anyone else who came before her. And she knew that with a couple more twists of her tongue, she could throw Grace fully into the throes of rapture. She picked up her pace, circling around Grace’s clit once, twice, three times before she felt the redhead’s body grow taut and she heard the telltale cries of her girl riding out her orgasm.</p><p>As Grace’s body slackened against the sink, Karen tried to sit back on her haunches, giving both of them a second to recover. But the second she pulled away, Grace hooked her fingers underneath Karen’s chin, guiding her up to her lips for a kiss. She wrapped her arms around Karen’s shoulders, closing the gap between their bodies. Chest against chest. Skin against skin. It made it impossible to break away from Grace’s hold to turn the water off, the tub filled perfectly for them to soak in.</p><p>“No,” Grace drew out, pouting playfully when Karen made her way to the bath. “Come back here.”</p><p>Karen stepped into the tub and smirked as she held out her hand for Grace to take. “No,” she murmured, shaking her head ever so slightly. “Come over<em> here.” </em> Her smile grew wider when Grace took her hand and let her lead her into the bath, settling into the water as Grace rested herself between Karen’s legs, her back against the dark haired woman’s chest. Karen let the water settle for a moment before she broke the silence. “You know, I could get used to this if we’re not careful.”</p><p>“You can afford to get used to it,” Grace said. “I’m sure you’ve got some luxurious bathroom that’s bigger than my apartment in your new place.”</p><p>Well. She did have to scale back a bit after the divorce. But Grace wasn’t far off. “Well, sure,” Karen mumbled as she slid her arms around her girl. “But last time I checked, you were pretty well off in that department, too.”</p><p>“Will is. I’m the one who got stuck with the half bath.”</p><p>“That’s okay, honey. That just means you have an excuse to come by the new manse more often.”</p><p><em> Shit. </em> Did that seriously come out of her mouth just now? It was one thing to let herself believe in a world outside of this hotel room where they could have this without any repercussions. But it was reckless to get Grace to start believing in it, too. It was hard enough knowing they only had a little bit of time left together; she didn’t want to make it worse by feeding a delusion. It flew in the face of all the rules she put into place to protect them when they had to wake up from this dream.</p><p>She needed to fix it, fast.</p><p>Grateful for the silence (maybe Grace was just as surprised as she was that those words hit the air), she planted a kiss at the crown of Grace’s head, letting herself linger in her girl’s wildfire locks as her mind scrambled to change the subject before Grace could respond. “So where are you supposed to be right now?”</p><p>Grace responded as though she hadn’t noticed the way she slipped up, absentmindedly stroking Karen’s thigh underwater like it was second nature, like they had been sharing quiet moments in bathtubs for years. “God, I don’t even know anymore,” she sighed. “That panel on sustainable design probably started by now. Although, I have to say...this is a <em> much </em> better way to spend the rest of my day.”</p><p>“What, me luring you in here for a quick fuck?”</p><p>She felt her girl’s body shake with laughter against her. “Who said anything about quick?” Grace turned around so that she was facing Karen, the most overwhelmingly sincere look in her eyes, and it was incredible how such a light moment could take this turn in an instant. “I intend to take my time with you.”</p><p>Grace didn’t break eye contact as her fingers walked up Karen’s thigh, setting off tiny explosions every inch of the way. Karen couldn’t get over everything that touch did to her. It was safe even if it felt dangerous. It was truth after being told nothing but lies. It was a long-awaited homecoming. It was everything. She never wanted it to leave her body again.</p><p>Because in that touch, she felt herself edging closer towards forever.</p><p> </p><p>**********</p><p> </p><p>“Will you hurry up already?”</p><p>“Don’t rush me! I need to make it good.”</p><p>“Well, pick up the pace a little, honey. I’m losing my buzz.”</p><p>“Please...like you could <em> ever </em> lose a buzz.”</p><p>Grace propped herself up on her elbow and narrowed her eyes, the rustle of the bed sheets underlining her quip, studying Karen so intensely, it would have made the dark haired woman shield herself if it was anybody else’s gaze. But good lord, the way she tried to pierce through the surface felt too good to look away. It was like she wanted to burrow deep inside of Karen, like she wouldn’t be satisfied until she got all the way down to the bone. And Karen wanted her to get there. Karen wanted her to go as far as she possibly could.</p><p>“Okay, I’ve got it,” Grace smirked after a minute, a little too triumphant too soon. “My saddest childhood memory. Go.”</p><p>Karen rolled her eyes in a jokingly dismissive sigh. When they brought the remaining few bottles in the mini bar into the bedroom and started this game, quizzing each other on just how much they knew about the other, she assumed she’d be getting a few unearthed juicy details from her boss’ past. But as the game went on, she realized just how much Grace has let her in over the years, realized how she trusted Grace more than anyone else who had come into her life. It filled her, knowing that Grace had truly been her person for the last twenty years, but still...this was a game. And she was determined to win. “Oh, come on, that is so easy!” she exclaimed, basking in yet another victory. “When you figured out that hamsters couldn’t fly.”</p><p>She giggled as Grace’s face fell in defeat. “When did I tell you that?” the redhead asked with a hint of disappointment in her voice.</p><p>“Years ago! You were in third grade, and you got the bright idea to use the class hamster for your little experiment. And Mrs. What’s-her-name got so mad, she made you stay after school for two weeks.”</p><p>“Mrs. <em> Wasserman,” </em> Grace pouted. “She was the worst. And I hate this game.”</p><p>“Awww, my sore loser.” Karen ran her fingers through Grace’s wildfire locks, sighing as the redhead relaxed against her touch. “Might as well face it, honey. I just know you better.”</p><p>“Excuse me, we’re tied.”</p><p>“For now.” She pulled Grace into a soft kiss, smiling against her girl’s lips before breaking away. “You know, if you really want to surprise me,” she murmured, “you should try something you haven’t even told Wilma. If there even <em> is </em> anything you’ve kept from Wilma…”</p><p>She was convinced that it was a sure bet, to keep the tie, to give her a chance to gain the lead. Just as she was sure that she knew Grace as well as she knew herself, she also knew that Will and Grace told each other everything, no matter how trivial it was. She had seen the way they could go on for hours about overzealous bikini waxes and whether or not Will accidentally put whole milk in his coffee that morning; she knew that there was no stone left unturned between those two. And once those stones were turned, it was pointless to keep them as secrets. Which meant Karen knew everything. Which meant it was impossible to best her. Which meant she could keep reveling in how cute Grace looked when she pouted like that.</p><p>But then the look on Grace’s face shifted into something gently devilish.</p><p>And then her smirk lit up her features in a way Karen had never seen before.</p><p>And she knew she was about to lose.</p><p>“Okay, I’ve got a good one. Something that I’ve never told Will.” Grace’s voice was low, carrying the weight of her secret as she slid her hand over Karen’s, her smirk slipping into a genuine smile when Karen’s fingers brushed against hers. And then she took a breath. “You’re not the first woman I’ve been with.”</p><p>Devil. That <em> was </em> a good one.</p><p>“Are you serious?!” Karen asked a little too loudly, stunned that the redhead had been keeping this from her for god knew how long. She watched as the shine in Grace’s eyes became smugger, and couldn’t believe how good her girl looked in this light. “You’ve been holding out on me, Red. When did this happen?”</p><p>Grace shrugged. “A million years ago. I was single. Will was still with Michael, and they were off on some date night, so I was left to my own devices. I took myself out to dinner downtown, sat myself down at the bar, and soon enough, she took the stool next to mine. Kat. God, she was gorgeous. Dark eyes, dark hair. Confidence that could knock you over the second she said hello to you.”</p><p>“Cripes, honey,” Karen drew out, twirling her own dark hair around her fingers as her smirk grew. “You <em> do </em> have a type.”</p><p>Grace let out a laugh that filled the room as she playfully nudged Karen’s arm. “Hey, I know what I like, I can’t help it,” she said. “Anyway, we got to talking, and the connection was just so immediate. She asked if I wanted to go somewhere else for a drink, and I didn’t think twice. She took me to the Henrietta Hudson, and when I realized it was a women’s bar...I don’t know, in that moment, it felt right. Being with her felt right.” She took a beat, like she was thinking back on the thrill of that night, and shook her head. “It wasn’t anything serious. A few dates, a few sleepovers. And then I met Danny. But I liked being with her, all the ways I was with her. It made me realize I couldn’t close myself off to women.”</p><p>“How come you never told Will?”</p><p>“I don’t know, I guess I just knew he was going to start asking me a million questions that I didn’t really feel like answering. It wasn’t like I was ashamed of it or anything. It just didn’t turn into something where I could bring her home to meet the family. I always figured if I met someone else, and she stayed around long enough, then I would fill him in. But there hasn’t really been someone who caught my attention the way Kat did.”</p><p>Karen didn’t realize how badly she wanted Grace to follow that with a soft, sincere “Until you” until enough silence filled the room to make her realize she wasn’t going to say it. It was probably for the best. It would have made this a little too real to leave behind. But the logic didn’t take away the disappointment.</p><p>The dark haired woman hoped Grace didn’t notice the shift as she worked to recover. “And here I thought I had you all figured out,” she said a little too brightly. “I kinda like knowing there are layers I haven’t seen yet.”</p><p>Grace’s smile started to falter as her triumph gave way to what looked like doubt. “Does it change what we’re doing here?” she asked. “Like, it’s not special anymore?”</p><p>“What, because I’m not your one and only? Of course not.” Karen brushed a lock of Grace’s wildfire behind her ear, cradling her cheek in her hand for a moment. “Gracie...honey, this isn’t special because I thought I was changing your world. It’s special because it’s you.”</p><p>The redhead’s gaze felt gentle and intense all at once. “I didn’t say you weren’t changing my world,” she whispered.</p><p>They let it float in the silence for a moment, Karen marveling at the way something that felt so loaded could be so light. She wanted to grab it from the space between them and hold it close to her chest. Because the truth of the matter was, Grace was changing her world, too. If she was being honest, Grace had been slowly changing her world since she first walked into that tiny studio space and miraculously convinced the cute, stretched thin redhead to let her use it as her sanctuary in exchange for a little bit of work. Even though there were times she didn’t want to admit it. Even though there were times she couldn’t. Even though it took twenty years to end up in the same bed with no pretenses. Karen could say it right now, and it wouldn’t be the shocking revelation she was certain it would be in Manhattan; it would be simple, obvious, true. It would fill the room. It would float.</p><p>So why did it feel so heavy on her tongue?</p><p>It was almost as if Grace could sense it, and she tried to make the air shift by offering up a smile that made it clear she was trying to lighten the mood. “Okay, so <em> now </em> you know me better,” she said, scaring away any confession Karen had been ready to make. “Which still isn’t fair, by the way…”</p><p>Karen let a smirk start to play across her face. If this was the mood Grace wanted, this was the mood she was going to get. “Then you ask me something!” she drew out, feeling lighter with each syllable. “Come on...what have you been dying to know?”</p><p>Grace pulled the dark haired woman into her embrace, twisted her features like she had to give it some intense thought, even though the question spilled from her lips a second later. “Have you ever thought about what it would be like to be with me?” she murmured.</p><p>Well. The lightness was nice while it lasted.</p><p>Karen felt her heart leap into her throat. It was such an innocent question, such an innocent curiosity. And Karen never felt as safe as she did in this moment, in these arms, with this girl. She could give in to it, let it loosen her lips the way she honestly wanted it to. Because there was a part of her that wanted to let Grace know how deep this went. There was part of her that wanted Grace to know how long she wanted this. But there was part of her that wondered how far down their history she could go without completely scaring her off. And that was the part that couldn’t help but take over.</p><p>She could tell her about the more recent times, the ones that made it seem like it just occurred to her that they could really be something. Like the time Karen needed Lorraine to hand over her photos from her affair with Stan, so that she could get what she deserved in the divorce. Grace not only went with her to the strip club Lorraine worked at, but also accepted Lorraine’s ridiculous challenge to dance on that stage in exchange for the pictures. Karen spent the ride home amazed that she had somebody like Grace, who was so willing to be in her corner like that.</p><p>She could also probably get away with the time Grace went through a bit of a dry spell after her second divorce, and she couldn’t help thinking of the ways she could love the redhead back to life. She had seen the way Grace was around Leo, both times they were married; that relationship would have discouraged anyone from putting themselves out there again. But good lord...Grace deserved the world. Even if she didn’t think she deserved it. Even if she wasn’t used to it. And there were times when Karen was convinced she could give it to her. She tried not to think too much about why she wanted to.</p><p>These were the things that felt safe. Anything beyond this would be too big of a risk.</p><p>But maybe those things were risks that were worth taking.</p><p>Like the time Grace asked her to go with her to Leo’s cabin in Vermont. How even in the midst of Grace’s doubt, both of them had to admit how wonderful it was to play house together. To be there alone. To sleep in the same bed. To kiss each other goodnight.</p><p>Or like the time Grace stayed at the manse just after Stan went to prison. How even though Karen had refused to admit she needed her, Grace refused to let her be alone. How it felt so wonderful, so right to wake up next to her, even if she knew she could never really have it again.</p><p>Or like the time Grace found more out about her past than Karen ever wanted her to know. How one lousy fetish film made it feel like her world had just ended. How Grace didn’t hesitate to search for every single copy in Manhattan like her knight in questionable polyblends, just so no one else would ever see what she had done. How she knew no one else in her life would do that for her, and she wondered what on earth made Grace care about her so much.</p><p>Or like the time she asked Will for advice on divorcing Stan when she was only a few months into her job at Grace Adler Designs. She let Will believe it was for the usual reasons, and for the most part, it was. But she could never tell him what spurred the usual reasons. That ever since she walked into Grace’s office, she knew she was in the presence of someone who could change her life. That sitting at that desk and getting to know her boss, keeping the way Grace gave her a chance that no one else would close to her heart, made her believe that she was meant for someone better than she settled for. And even though she played it off as a fleeting thought at the end of the day, even though she made it seem like she snapped out of it and truly wanted to stay with her husband, there was that thought lingering in the back of her mind. The one that tried to convince her that maybe Grace was the someone she was meant for.</p><p>Or like any one of the countless times they toed the line without completely crossing it, times that started from the moment they met.</p><p>She had been thinking about what it would be like to be with Grace for the better part of twenty years. Not that she could tell her that. Not yet, anyway. So instead of delving into her own personal history, Karen burrowed into the crook of Grace’s arm and smiled against her skin. “Well, sure, honey,” she said, wondering if it sounded too bright to be that simple. “Of course I have. How could I not?” She heard Grace sigh in satisfaction and realized it was the end of it, it was enough for the redhead to know that she had been on Karen’s mind like that. She couldn’t remember the last time she was enough for someone.</p><p>They fell into a comfortable silence, Karen resting her head against Grace’s chest, her fingers sprawled along the redhead’s bare torso just to feel the warmth of her girl. They could tell themselves that this was a physical thing all they wanted, that it was some unexpected sex vacation. Meant to make them feel alive. Meant for them to get their groove back, or whatever cliché they could put on this so they could dismiss it the second the land back in New York. And sure, Karen felt alive; she never realized how desperately she needed to be brought back to life in the first place. But it wasn’t because of the way Grace touched her, and it wasn’t because of the way she made her melt into the mattress every time she hovered over her. It wasn’t because Grace didn’t quit until she made Karen come, and it wasn’t because Grace made her weak in a way that she craved with everything she had.</p><p>Karen was alive because she was finally, <em> finally, </em> where she was always supposed to be. And she needed Grace to know that.</p><p>“Gracie?” she asked softly, waiting for the redhead’s murmur of acknowledgement before she continued. “I know we’re all about this whole anything goes, hard end date deal right now. But you and me, what we’re doing...it’s more than that to me. I wouldn’t be doing this unless I truly felt something for you.”</p><p>She knew that would get a response. Maybe a fumbling of words, maybe asking if she really meant it. Maybe, if she was lucky, Grace would say she felt something for her, too. What she didn’t see coming was the quick, startled laugh that left Grace’s mouth, jolting their bodies and shattering the calm that surrounded them. It was such a moment of disbelief that she wondered if Grace could understand exactly what she did to her. “I’m serious,” she said, the words fitting perfectly on her tongue. “Honey, you mean the world to me.”</p><p>The redhead was quiet for a moment, and then, “Why?”</p><p>Karen lifted her head, made sure her eyes were locked on Grace’s so she could see the truth for what it was. “Because. You know all my tells. You know all my quirks. You know me. And you haven’t left.” She watched as Grace took it in, felt the weight of it, realized it was real. The way her eyes flashed a spark of realization that Karen’s guard was finally down, that life was perfectly fine without it. And even though they let the silence fill the air, it wasn’t heavy, and it wasn’t daunting. It was freeing.</p><p>Grace didn’t need to say anything, not after twenty years in each other’s lives. Karen knew it was the same for her, too.</p><p>She always figured they were on the same page. But she had never been more sure of it than she was in this moment. It made her think that maybe she shouldn’t fight so hard for an end to this story. It made her think that a life together beyond these walls wasn’t so far-fetched after all. In fact, it seemed pretty damn possible.</p><p>It should have scared her. But it didn’t. And she fell asleep that night, thinking if Grace would fight against their Cinderella rules again, she might surrender.</p><p>She fell asleep thinking about how wonderful it would feel to surrender. <br/><br/></p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <em> <strong>“If you don’t take me all the way</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong>We’ll let the world down, yeah</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong>Can’t let the world down, no”</strong> </em>
</p><p>She had been thinking about it ever since the morning. Before Grace had a chance to put a voice to it, to make it seem like it was the easiest thing in the world. Before Grace was even awake. Before it could truly sink in that this was their last full day together. Before the sun had a chance to rise and the bedroom was still drenched in deep early morning blue. She was thinking about where they could steal away to, so that they wouldn’t have to go back home. It wouldn’t be hard; one call to Pilot, and they could jet off to any place their hearts desired. But it would have to be the right place. Because this time, she wouldn’t be running out of fear; she would be running out of love.</p><p>Because that’s what this was, plain and simple.</p><p>It hit Karen like a meteor, crashing to Earth at 4:30 in the morning and refusing to let her go back to sleep. She turned to the other side of the bed to make sure Grace hadn’t felt it, the way the world shook with realization just then. But her girl was so deep in sleep that there was no way it could have registered. Slowly, Karen reached out, gently brushing away the wildfire locks that had fallen over Grace’s features in slumber, letting herself linger even though she knew it was risky, that Grace could wake up at any moment and catch her being far more vulnerable than she wanted to be. She got out of bed and shrugged into her robe, pacing around for a minute as she tried to figure out what to do with herself. She tiptoed to the mini bar for a nightcap to calm her nerves, only to find that they had gone through every last bottle that was in there. She searched through her bag for her emergency cigarettes, the ones she only touched as a last resort, the ones only meant to fill her with something other than anxiousness. And when she realized she hadn’t packed them, she braced herself for the chill and stepped out onto the balcony, hoping to quiet her mind now that her thoughts weren’t able to bounce off the walls of the hotel, echoing louder and louder.</p><p>This was different. This was deeper. This was worse. Worse because it was different, deeper. Worse because her past taught her that there would always be a day when the one you love leaves you. Worse because when that day comes and Grace leaves, her wildfire will scorch everything in its wake, and Karen will be left scrambling to build something out of the debris.</p><p>Devil. This wasn’t supposed to be how it went. They were supposed to have their fun and move on. They were supposed to get it out of their system here, so that they could go back to New York without changing their dynamic, without making the boys suspicious, without destroying everything they spent the last twenty years building together. But as the days went on, she realized how impossible it would be to move on from this. Because she never had this before. And as much as she didn’t want to mess this up, as much as she wanted to believe in the rules that had spilled from her lips, she wanted to keep this. Not as a memory. As a reality. Out of selfishness, out of greed. Out of foolishness. Out of something she couldn’t name.</p><p>She was in love with Grace. That fact was so bright, it was blinding.</p><p>And Grace wasn’t like anyone else she had ever known. There was no way around that.</p><p>So would it be that bad to admit out loud that she fell?</p><p>It was a question without an immediate answer, one that got swept up in the breeze before she could grab onto it, making her go back inside just as clueless as she was before. It was the last thought to run through her mind before she climbed back into bed, crawled inside Grace’s arms and fell asleep. The next thing she knew, she felt a sleepy scratch against her back as Grace tried to wake her up. Karen groaned into consciousness, tightening her hold on her girl’s waist to let her know that she was right there with her. And she let herself revel in the calm that surrounded them. She couldn’t remember the last time she had this, couldn’t remember ever having this if she was being honest. She couldn’t remember easing into mornings like this, couldn’t remember the overwhelming feeling that everything was going to be okay. It made her feel like she could say anything, and it wouldn’t be the wrong thing, like she could ask a question and the answer would be the one she wanted and needed. And before she could stop herself, the one thing she wanted to know spilled from her lips.</p><p>“Why did you ask me to come on this trip with you?”</p><p>She felt the way Grace started to weave her fingers through her hair, sighed softly at how soothing it was when the redhead touched her like that. She heard Grace’s answer: “I didn’t want to be here without you.” And she felt overwhelming relief that the redhead couldn’t see the way her eyes started to fill with the tears she tried like hell to swallow. Even though Grace didn’t give her time to recover, couldn’t know that Karen needed a moment to save face. “Why did you agree to come with me?”</p><p>Two days ago, if Grace had asked her that, she would have given one of the stock answers. Because Grace needed someone to help her rein it in. Because she was good at keeping Grace away from certain disaster. Because who wouldn’t want an excuse for a little vacation? Because of any one of the tiny excuses she could use to mask the real reason. But now, Grace knew every inch of her, down to the bone. Now, masks and excuses seemed completely pointless. Now, she knew she was safe to speak from the heart. And without missing a beat, she murmured, “I didn’t want to stay there without you.”</p><p>She felt her nerves vibrating throughout her body the second she said that. It thrilled her, being this open, this vulnerable with someone. It was even better that her someone had been in her life for decades, had seen her through her best and her worst. But it scared her, too. Because she’d been here before, with people who didn’t deserve to go that far in the first place. She had known Stanley for years before making it official. She thought what they had was special, she thought he was a good man. She trusted him enough to let him in, over and over again. She gave him more chances than he was worth. And every single chance led to a bigger heartbreak than the one that came before it.</p><p>Karen didn’t want to go through that again. She deserved better than to go through that again. </p><p>She loved Grace fiercely, more than she had loved anyone else to ever come and go from her life. And she knew her girl was different, staying by her side regardless of the obstacles life placed in the path of their friendship. If Karen was going to trust anyone with her heart, it was her. But if her years on this earth taught her anything, it was that even the most solid relationships turn to dust over time. It would be so easy to give Grace all of her, to have absolutely nothing left if Grace decided to surprise her by walking away. There would be no way to survive that; she would be destroyed. Which was why their Cinderella rules came in handy. Which was why Karen wasn’t going to back down on their expiration date. Which was why Karen wasn’t going to give any more thought to jetting off with Grace to the ends of the world so they could take whatever this was all the way.</p><p>Good lord, Grace made it hard, though.</p><p>She tried her best to dismiss it when Grace brought it up this morning, lying in bed after that quiet, sun drenched confession of refusing to be without each other. She defaulted to a joke, thought <em> You just want me for my exotic vacations </em> was cute and flirty and just enough of a play to get her girl to change the subject. But she underestimated Grace’s ability to take a joke, counter with her own-- <em> And your body </em> --and twist it into the most stunningly sincere thought to ever leave a set of lips-- <em> And your heart. </em> So she got defensive, rattled off some nonsense about not pressing their luck, about how Grace would get sick of her after a while even though their decades-long history begged to differ. And Grace let it go. But she looked so overwhelmingly defeated that Karen couldn’t take it. It made her feel like an ice queen. And nobody wanted to spend their life with an ice queen, as a friend, as a soulmate, as anything.</p><p>She wanted to make it easy to leave all of this behind. She didn’t want to lose Grace completely. So when they went down to the bar for Bloody Marys and mimosas, she tried to smooth things over, trotting out an analogy she didn’t really believe in, some convoluted babble about how their time here should be bottled up like the Stoli in her mini bar, only meant to be opened when they needed a little light amidst the darkness. But neither of them bought it, even if they were telling each other they did. And she started to think it wouldn’t be so bad to think about all the places they could go to keep this going. She started to think it wouldn’t be so bad to fantasize. She started to think it wouldn’t be so bad to talk with Grace about it.</p><p>As long as it was just talk.</p><p>“Paris would be nice,” she murmured as she tried to get the bartender’s attention for another round. “For a little while, anyway. But eventually, I’d want to take you all over the world. Maybe some of those remote islands only the one percent knows about.”</p><p>Grace furrowed her brow like she couldn’t hear what Karen said. But then the clouds parted, the redhead’s eyes lit up, she started to look like the Grace that Karen knew and loved again. “Tell me about these remote islands,” she smirked.</p><p>Karen thought back to the times Stan thought he was whisking her away to a romantic vacation on some tropical island, just the two of them, not a soul around for miles. Back then, it wasn’t so much a vacation as it was a prison. But she knew it was because the wrong person had whisked her away. “Well…” she started, drawing a long sip from her drink as Grace shined in anticipation. “Clear waters, white sands. We’d have a gorgeous bungalow all to ourselves.”</p><p>“You could have me in every room of that bungalow…”</p><p>Karen let out a surprised laugh at Grace’s quip; from the look in Grace’s eyes, she wasn’t expecting it to spill from her lips, either. But the redhead never was too great at holding her liquor. And really, it was just harmless talk, building a fantasy. So why not have a little fun? “We wouldn’t have any neighbors either, you know. We wouldn’t have to see another person the entire time we’re there. You could have <em> me </em> right there on the beach if you wanted to.”</p><p>At that, Grace moved in a little closer, hung her arms around Karen’s neck. “I could have you right here at the bar if I wanted to,” she smirked, her sweet mimosa breath tickling Karen’s skin in the most intoxicating way.</p><p>With Grace so close to her, it took a moment for Karen to find her words. And as much fun as it was to play this game, she couldn’t help but let a little more sincerity push through. “You could, honey. But it would be better on the island. With no one around? We could be the only people in the world.”</p><p>Grace pressed a kiss to Karen’s cheek and let it linger for a moment before she whispered into the dark haired woman’s ear. “I swear, it feels like we already are.”</p><p>Karen’s heart leapt into her throat, made it impossible to speak. Because she felt it too, knew that this hotel was packed with designers and tourists who could all bear witness to what they’ve shared, but they were faceless, nameless. She and Grace, they were the only two people who mattered. Here in this hotel, back home in New York, anywhere they wanted to go, they were the ones who counted. It wouldn’t matter what anyone else said, what anyone else thought. As long as Grace loved her as much as she loved Grace. And she was so sure that Grace loved her.</p><p>They just needed to say it. And Karen was beginning to wonder why she was so convinced she shouldn’t.</p><p>She could make it real. The words were right there. It would be quick, easy, reciprocated. It was the sure bet that Grace declared it to be. She could tell Grace that she was in love. She could...</p><p>“What would I tell Will?”</p><p>In an instant, Karen jolted back into reality. She cleared her throat, getting the remnants of an almost-confession away from her tongue. “Why do you have to tell him anything? He flew off to the Virgin Islands for three months without so much as a word to you all those years ago, for god’s sake. He set the precedent.”</p><p>Grace let out “God, that was almost twenty years ago. I can’t believe you remember that.”</p><p>Karen sighed, the memory of that trip still vivid in her head after all these years. “The one time Stan promised he wouldn’t spend our vacation working, and he has to find out his lawyer escaped to the same island. It was a nightmare. Of course I remember it. Just like I remember every other time he promised me a romantic getaway and ended up working through it.”</p><p>She watched as Grace’s lips formed a perfect little pout that her champagne buzz must have played a part in. “Too many nightmares,” the redhead murmured as she brushed a lock of hair behind Karen’s ear, her gently serious tone washing over the dark haired woman. “You deserve a dream come true for once.” And then, just as Karen was settling comfortably into the fantasy, Grace’s voice came through like a record scratch. “So let’s do it.”</p><p>Karen tried to play it off like she had no clue what the redhead was talking about, let out an innocent little “Do what?” thinking that it would trip Grace up, that it would get her to drop it if she thought they weren’t on the same page.</p><p>But Grace wasn’t so easily deterred.</p><p>“Let’s go...somewhere. Anywhere. Paris, remote bungalow, I don’t care. Let’s be the only two people in the world.” Devil. This was getting a little too real. Maybe she could steer this in another direction before it got out of control. Maybe she could try to say something, anything, before Grace got another word in. Maybe she could--</p><p>“When do you wanna go?”</p><p><em> Devil. </em> There it was.</p><p>She took it too far; this was supposed to be just talk. She never meant to lead Grace on, never wanted to be another in the line of people who promised her things without ever coming through. Whatever happened here stayed here; that was the plan, that was the deal they made. To go any further than that would be irresponsible. To set any kind of plan into motion would be to feed a delusion. To act like they had any kind of chance in Manhattan would be to douse the bridge between them in kerosene and light a match. Normally, she wouldn’t care; most of those bridges were better off in ashes anyway. But to see Grace on the other side of a wall of flames was something she knew her heart couldn’t take.</p><p>She needed to pull this back, now.</p><p>Karen plastered on a believable smile, tried a little too hard to let out an effortless laugh. “Come on, honey,” she said. “Let’s enjoy the rest of this trip before we go planning another one.” It seemed to satisfy Grace, made the redhead murmur in agreement before brushing a kiss against the dark haired woman’s cheek, carrying on like they had the time to go to the ends of the earth together. And Karen didn’t stop her from believing it.</p><p>But she knew better.</p><p>At the end of the day, they were far from being the only two people in the world. They could keep telling each other that no one else’s opinion mattered, but Karen knew deep down that it wasn’t true. Grace always cared about what Will thought, even though Grace begged to differ at times; no matter how much her friendship with Will had grown over the years, Karen could already hear the judgment that would surely work its way into Grace’s ear and change her mind. Jack wouldn’t get it despite all the questions he was bound to ask; she’d start to look different in his eyes, and she wasn’t sure if she could stand to watch one of the most stable relationships in her life shift like that. Something like Karen being in love with Grace could irrevocably change the dynamic of their little group. Not necessarily for the better.</p><p>She would never say it out loud, would likely deny it if you ever asked her, but those three people made up the only real family she had ever known. If that family fell apart, she didn’t know what she would do. She wasn’t about to pull at the fabric of that bond until it unraveled.</p><p>As much as she loved Grace, as certain as she was that Grace was who she was always meant for, they had to stop once they left this hotel. To keep the peace. To keep the family intact. For Grace’s own good. And for hers.</p><p>Even if she was shaky on that last one, at least she knew she was doing this for Grace’s own good.</p><p>They would have their last few hours together; she wasn’t about to lose that time with her girl. They would get as much out of this as they could. But Karen knew she had to flip the switch once the clock hit midnight. If she was going to spare them heartache down the line, she knew she would have to get a little mean in the morning, kill the dream without completely destroying everything they built before they flew to L.A. She would have to make Grace see that being with her wasn’t as incredible as their vacation haze made it seem. She would have to play the ice queen to make it out alive.</p><p>Because nobody wanted to spend their life with an ice queen.</p><p> </p><p>**********</p><p> </p><p>It was only meant to be a last resort. Just in case it turned out that she read Grace wrong for the first time in her life. Just in case there wasn’t a fight against the end that would make her inevitably cave. Just in case she had gotten too good at masking her true desires. It came to her in the middle of the night, and she couldn’t tell if it was brilliant or if it was just a product of her own restless delusion. But after Grace left last night, after those last few hours of bittersweet perfection, she couldn’t stop thinking about what it would be like to keep this going, what it would be like to love her in Manhattan the way she loved her in Los Angeles. It made her want to break the rules so badly. And it made her try to come up with a way to break them. She knew it was foolish, the plan she came up with. But it was the only thing she could hold onto that had any kind of shot at working. That was, if she could manage it without Grace noticing.</p><p>Karen walked the forty-five steps to Grace’s door, and cripes, she hadn’t been able to get that number out of her head since Grace said it. She didn’t mean to count those steps. It was just that each one carried its own little bit of doubt, and she couldn’t help but keep that tally in her mind. Because maybe this was going to be too subtle. Maybe Grace wouldn’t unpack for days or--as part of her suspected the case would be--weeks. Maybe Grace would unpack right away, but think she grabbed it accidentally. Maybe Grace would find it and not say anything at all.</p><p>Maybe it would all be for nothing. But she had to try.</p><p>She just had to do the hard part first.</p><p>Karen stood outside the door, taking a deep breath, strengthening her poker face, unsure if either of these things were doing her any good. She had to stick to the rules; she knew that, even if everything inside of her was fighting against it. To make it easier for them to go back home. To make it easier to be in the same room together, hanging around 9C, getting unannounced visits to the office. To make it easier to pretend. But she was waiting for Grace to smash through that wall, just like she did with all of the others. It was only a matter of time. She tightened her grip on the handle of her suitcase until her knuckles were white, as if that was going to do anything to help her get through this. She knocked on the door. She waited for Grace to greet her, fully intending on looking her straight in the eye like nothing was out of the ordinary. But as soon as the door started to give way to her girl, her gaze dropped to the floor in a magnet pull; she couldn’t bear to look at Grace with this mask on.</p><p>“You ready to go?” she managed, before the redhead could get a word in. It was shorter, harsher than she wanted it to sound. But good lord, if she heard anything resembling brightness in Grace’s voice right now, she knew she would start to crumble. She thought she needed to speak first to be okay, to play her role, to get them through this. But she could still feel it, the way the air disappeared. The way the walls were closing in.</p><p>The way it got harder to breathe. </p><p>“Uh...yeah,” Grace faltered, leaving Karen sick with the knowledge that she made the redhead unsteady in the worst way. “Just let me finish getting my stuff from the bathroom.” Karen wheeled her suitcase into the room, her eyes still trained on the subtle lattice pattern of the carpet. Grace’s footsteps slowly disappeared from the corner of Karen’s eye, and the dark haired woman took a breath that was fortifying enough to dare to look up at the woman she disappointed. She only got a glimpse of her, back turned towards her before the bathroom door all but shut. But a glimpse was all she needed.</p><p>She didn’t need to see the look on Grace’s face to know it was just as defeated as hers.</p><p>Karen felt rooted, the gravity in the room pushing her further and further down the longer the silence dominated the room. The damage had been done, there was no coming back from it. Grace had been fighting against the end for the entire trip with a fire that could not be extinguished, a fire that seemed determined to melt even the most rock-solid block of ice. But Karen always did have a habit of pushing things as far as they could go. Until boundaries broke. Until fires went out. Until there was nothing left. Sometimes for fun. Sometimes for her own protection. Always without regret. Always.</p><p>Then again, she was never trying to push away the girl who meant everything all of those other times before.</p><p>It made her scramble for a plan that wasn’t even that great to begin with. Sneaking a robe into Grace’s suitcase like it meant anything. Like it would be the right kind of sign. Like it could say everything that Karen wouldn’t. It wasn’t anything significant of their time here. And it wasn’t like she could slip the sparks she felt every time Grace’s fingertips brushed against her skin into that suitcase. Or the late-night confessions she whispered into her ear. Or the safety that surrounded them in that hotel suite. She couldn’t pack away any of the things that counted. This was all she had to offer. She probably shouldn’t even offer it.</p><p>But god help her, after all these years, she still loved doing what she probably shouldn’t.</p><p>With the bathroom door still between them, Karen laid her suitcase down on the bed next to Grace’s open one, careful not to make any kind of sound that would make the redhead stop what she was doing and peek in. She unzipped the top, finding the pink robe perfectly folded and sitting pretty on top of everything else, and let her fingers linger along the silk for a moment. It was crazy, hanging all of her hopes onto this. But crazy was all she had to rely on. She took a breath in preparation before reaching into Grace’s suitcase and parting the sea of discarded clothes to slide the robe underneath it all. She spread Grace’s belongings on top of it, hoping that the redone chaos was close enough to the kind Grace used to pack. She zipped her own suitcase back up with one eye on the door. And by the time Grace finally came back into the room to dump the rest of her things in her suitcase, it was as if Karen hadn’t moved at all. Her own suitcase by her side. Eyes on her phone. Pretending like she didn’t just throw the most desperate Hail Mary Grace’s way. Once Karen finally mustered the courage to look Grace in the eye, she could tell that the redhead didn’t suspect a thing.</p><p>Against every fiber of her being telling her otherwise, Karen intended to keep it that way.</p><p>“Pilot’s good to go whenever we are. I’ll call a car for us.”</p><p>She didn’t recognize the voice that spilled from her lips. She couldn’t decide if that helped her or hurt her.</p><p>Karen thought it would be easier once they got on the plane. Opposite sides of the aisle, the roar of the engine swallowing up every other sound around them. They could close their eyes and pretend they had fallen asleep until they didn’t have to pretend anymore. It should have been simple. But she kept looking over at Grace from across the aisle, staring at the way she had her back turned towards Karen, looking out the window, looking anywhere her assistant wasn’t. And it crushed her to realize the walls she had broken down in Los Angeles were the same ones Grace had just built.</p><p>There had to be something she could do. There had to be a way to buy more time, to figure out her next move, to try to fix what she had broken. Maybe if she took Grace home, she could say something on the drive over. Or she could stop her before she walked into 9C, spill everything at the last possible second. By then, she surely would have been able to come up with something to say, something that will start to warm the chill that surrounded them during their flight. Something that will bring the light back to Grace’s eyes. Something that could keep everything they started in Los Angeles going, now that they were back in New York.</p><p>Maybe it was a long shot. But a long shot was all she had left.</p><p>Once they landed, Karen let Grace know that Driver could take her home, pulling some excuse about visiting Jack out of thin air to explain it away and get her into the limo. She shot a text off to Jack that she was on her way and to leave the door open for her. And she spent the ride to Riverside Drive in silence, trying to find the right words, feeling the growing hopelessness press down on her chest when she couldn’t find them. She looked over at Grace from time to time, at a total loss over the mess she pulled them into. How was it possible to go from spilling all of their secrets to being unable to speak to each other so quickly? Why did this feel so insurmountable? What made her think that Grace would even give her a chance to fix things?</p><p>As if she heard her name ringing in Karen’s mind, Grace turned her head to meet her gaze, looking as sad as Karen felt. Those eyes pierced her through, made her want to shrink to nothing, because she knew that sadness was her fault. She couldn’t stand seeing what she had done to her girl. This was what she once thought was for the best. This was what she once thought would let them get back to normal as soon as possible. This was what she once thought would let them get through this unscathed.</p><p>She had no idea what she was thinking.</p><p>They reached Grace’s building, took the longest elevator ride she had ever experienced to the ninth floor. The redhead had her keys in her hand, ready to call it a night without another word, and Karen realized if she didn’t stop her now, she would lose her for good.</p><p>“Grace?”</p><p>She didn’t realize how small her voice sounded, didn’t realize exactly how nervous she was until she saw the way Grace took the sight of her in. She was never nervous before, not truly; she always knew how to work the person in front of her to get what she wanted, to get them on her side, to make them look the other way when she made a mistake. But Grace wasn’t like anybody else in her life. Grace knew her better than she knew herself. Grace could see right through her tricks. Any other time, Karen would count herself lucky that she had someone in her life who could see her for what she was, love her for what she was. But right now, she wished she could fall back on some of those tricks she kept in her back pocket. Instead, she tried to grasp for something true.</p><p>“Thank you for bringing me with you,” she said, nearly a whisper, realizing it was the closest she would let herself come to acknowledging their time in L.A. now that they were home.</p><p>Grace nodded like she was wary of where this was headed. “I...I’m really glad you came. I didn’t realize how much I needed you until we got there.”</p><p>This was it. This was the time. To say all the things she should. To take her in her arms. To say that she needed her, too. To make it right. She could take Grace back to her place, do all the things they did in Los Angeles, feel as free as they did on the West Coast. They could create an entire universe without ever leaving Karen’s bed. They could love each other fearlessly. They could be what they were always meant to be. All Karen had to do was say the word.</p><p>But the word was stuck in her throat, blocked by all of the things meant to build her walls back up, all of the things meant to help her survive. She knew she couldn’t say it even if she wanted to (god, she wanted to). Too much of the day had passed in silence. The damage was already done. Grace probably wouldn’t want to hear it anyway. And she didn’t think she could take having her heart broken by her best girl. So she said the only thing she could think of to say.</p><p>“Well...I’ll see you around honey.”</p><p>Before Grace could stop her, she gave a sad smile before turning to 9A, opening the door, welcoming Jack’s overenthusiastic greeting as best as she possibly could. The next thing she knew, she was thrust back into the version of the world where Grace never learned the map of her body, where they never gave themselves to each other, where her entire life never shifted course for the better. In an instant, Jack had unknowingly erased it all by closing the door behind her, by making her throw on whatever mask would protect her until she could go home, knock back a few drinks, and try to process it all on her own.</p><p>It had been a mistake to follow Grace to Riverside Drive. It only showed her what she already knew.</p><p>This was it. This was the end. They were done.</p><p>And Karen felt like she had just let the entire world down.</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Now</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span class="u"> <em> Now </em> </span>
</p><p>“Kare?”</p><p>With a start, she was thrown back into reality, disappointed to find herself back in Jack’s apartment, back in a version of the world where it didn’t matter that her hands knew how it felt to travel the curves of Grace’s body, where it didn’t matter that she knew what it sounded like when Grace said something, anything, with every single fiber of her heart. She wasn’t sure how long she had stayed in her memories, wasn’t sure how she would cover it up even if she knew. She met the giddy impatience radiating from Jack’s eyes and tried to shake the past few days off of her shoulders. “Oh! Poodle, I’m sorry. What did you say?”</p><p>“I <em> said, </em> are you gonna spill or what? I want details!”</p><p>“Well…” Maybe if she didn’t give specifics. Maybe if she didn’t name names. Maybe she didn’t have to give herself away entirely to get a little advice. “I don’t know...is it crazy to fall in love with someone after only a few days?” she asked, as if she hadn’t been slowly falling for Grace over the last twenty years. But it was a start.</p><p>Jack rolled his eyes like the answer was obvious. <em> “Please, </em> do you not remember Ryan? Or Mitchell? Or Chris? Or the other Mitchell? Or--”</p><p>Karen waved off the list of Jack’s one-night stands, knowing she wasn’t quite getting her point across (cripes, how many Mitchells did he date? How many Mitchells were there <em> to </em> date?). “No, no, honey, <em> love. </em> Not lust.”</p><p>“Oh.” She watched his brow furrow like he was trying to understand. And then, in a burst of realization, his eyes grew wide. <em> “Oh! </em> You mean like Estefan!”</p><p>She was about to dismiss him again in frustration when it hit her. Jack hit the nail on the head. Because that was it, more or less. Jack flew off for a getaway and found the love of his life. Karen had to admit, in the beginning she thought it was a rebound, something to distract him from the fact that he couldn’t make it work with Drew. But seeing them together now, she couldn’t believe how wrong she was. They fit perfectly together; Estefan was that piece of the puzzle Jack thought was lost forever, clicked into place when he had all but given up hope. It was what Karen had wanted for herself all these years, trying to click into place with one piece after another until the search exhausted her, making her settle for something that didn’t quite fit. Trying to convince herself that it was close enough, that you could still see the big picture for what it was. But still, there was always something off, something she couldn’t fix because the most important piece was missing.</p><p>She didn’t realize Grace was that missing piece all along. Not until Los Angeles.</p><p>And now, it was all she could think about.</p><p>“I know what it looks like, Kare,” Jack continued, completely oblivious to the swirl in her mind. “I know it looks like I rushed into things with Estefan. And maybe to everyone else, I did. But I saw him and I just...knew. I can’t explain it. He just got to me.”</p><p>Karen had never seen his eyes light up the way they did just now, as he held his love’s name on his tongue. It was all she needed to know that this wasn’t some crazy whim for him, bringing this boy back with him from Ibiza. “He really did, didn’t he?” she said as she slid her hand over his. “Maybe it’s not so crazy after all. Not that I can really do anything about it.”</p><p>“Why not?”</p><p><em> “Because, </em> Poodle. We promised we were going to leave things be once we left the hotel. The only way it was ever going to work was if it only lasted those few days.”</p><p>“Well, that’s dumb.”</p><p>She startled at his bluntness, thinking that maybe she misheard him at first. She could only remember a handful of instances over the last twenty years that his voice took that tone; it crashed in her ears every time, made her stand at attention, let her know that he was about to swoop in and save the day against everyone else’s expectations. “Whaddya talk?”</p><p>“If this person really got to you, why would you give that up? Why wouldn’t you fight for it?” Jack shook his head, his features growing more serious the longer they sat in silence. “Look, don’t hate me for saying this. But I’ve seen you with Stan and Lyle and Malcolm and Stan again, and I’ve seen the way they hurt you. I’ve seen the way you put up with it like you think you don’t deserve better. But you do. Clearly, this person makes you happy. Why wouldn’t you want to be around that all the time?”</p><p>It nearly made her laugh in disbelief, the way he stumbled onto Grace’s argument without even realizing it. She had the reasons she gave Grace locked and loaded, could probably rephrase that stupid mini bar analogy without even thinking about it, throwing it at him in a way that would knock any other conversation down in a heartbeat. But when she took a breath, those reasons refused to budge. Because those reasons weren’t about protection anymore. They weren’t about trying to preserve a connection with Grace outside of hotel cake and tangled limbs and long nights bearing their souls to each other. They weren’t about making the transition back to Manhattan as smooth as possible. They already served their purpose, and she hated it. Hearing the argument in Jack’s voice, though, gave her a little more clarity. It put things in perspective. It made her look at everything she had done in Los Angeles and wish she never pushed Grace away. It wasn’t the way to protect her. It wasn’t the way to keep the memories good. It wasn’t the way to stay close to the redhead. It wasn’t the way to live.</p><p>To borrow Jack’s short and sweet assessment of the situation, it was dumb.</p><p>“I do,” she whispered before she could find her voice. “I do want to be around that all the time. And I know she does, too.”</p><p>Jack’s smile was contagious. “So then do something about it.”</p><p>He said it like it was the simplest thing in the world.</p><p>Maybe it was.</p><p>“Oh, honey, you’re right,” she exclaimed, bolting out of her seat with newfound energy. She felt revitalized, she felt ready. It didn’t matter if she didn’t have a plan yet. She just knew she was going to make this right. And in that moment, it was enough. “I have to fix this. I’m <em> going </em> to fix this.” She bent down to kiss Jack on the cheek before grabbing her suitcase. “I gotta go plan. I’ll fill you in tomorrow.” She was almost out the door when she heard Jack call for her.</p><p>“Wait a minute! Are you ever gonna tell me who she is?”</p><p>Maybe he figured it out and was playing around. Maybe he still didn’t have a clue. Either way, she loved him for asking. She turned to face him, that hopeful twinkle in his eye blinding as she shrugged. “Sure I will. If she still wants me.”</p><p>He looked at her like there was no doubt. “Come on, Kare...who wouldn’t want you?”</p><p>Karen left 9A feeling like the heaviest weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Because someone else knew. Because someone else got it. Because someone else recognized how much it changed her. It was the fire she needed to spark her into action, the clarity to show her exactly what she needed to do to make this right. She glanced at the door across the hall, knowing that Grace was behind it. And she felt her heart fly into overdrive. The redhead was right there. Karen could walk in right now, lay all of her cards down on the table, let the ice melt and drown all of the things she said to keep Grace at arm’s length. She could tell Grace her whole truth. They could pick up where they left off. They could be happy. All she needed to do was say something.</p><p>That is, if Grace wanted to hear it.</p><p>She needed to face it; there was always the chance that she blew it. There was always the chance that she was too good at being the ice queen, that years of wearing masks around Stan made her too convincing in any role. And there was always the chance that Grace decided it wasn’t worth the effort. Maybe it would be better if they both slept on it. This really wasn’t something she should be doing on a whim. This needed a plan. This needed one hell of a speech. She tried to tell herself that she needed more time. To make it special. To make it count. To make sure she got it right. She didn’t need to barge into the apartment only to make things worse. This was the rational way of thinking, she knew. This was the path she should walk. The path that led her home.</p><p>The only problem was, she knew home wasn’t anywhere out there anymore. Home was right here. Home had always been right here.</p><p>Because there was a door just across the hall. And Grace was behind it.</p><p>And there was no time like the present.</p><p>So maybe she should try.</p><p> </p><p>**********</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> <strong> “And there’s no boundaries</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong> I could never hurt you</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong> You could never hurt me</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong> And we’re so unique</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong> We’re falling in love</strong> </em>
  <br/>
  <em> <strong> And letting love be”</strong> </em>
</p><p>9C faced her like a dare. Turn the key. Open it up. Walk inside. Find her. Love her. Be with her.</p><p>Come on, Karen. You know you want to.</p><p>It was crazy; she wasn’t blind to that. Sneaking into Will and Grace’s home, high on some far fetched hope that the lights would still be on, that Grace would still be awake, that Grace would be alone. It was late, they had a long flight. Keeping all the things you wished you could say deep inside of you is exhausting. Perhaps it was better for both of them to get some rest before digging back into that whirlwind of emotions they left behind in L.A. But she was certain she wouldn’t be sleeping tonight unless she knew. Knew whether Grace opened her suitcase. Knew whether she found Karen’s robe. Knew whether she still wanted to give this a shot after Karen pushed her away, to the other side of the plane, to the other side of the hallway, to the other side of love.</p><p>Karen stood in the middle of the hallway, fishing around in her purse for the key she knew would unlock the apartment; Grace had given it to her years ago for a reason she could no longer remember and never asked for it back. And even if she had, Karen was certain she would have lied and said she misplaced it; she couldn’t bear the thought of giving up a direct line to her girl. She felt the metal brush against her fingertips and scooped it up, the weight of it in her palm asking her if this was a boundary she truly wanted to break. She couldn’t explain it away if it didn’t go her way. She couldn’t pretend it never happened. There was no going back if she crossed that threshold.</p><p>But if she was being honest, she crossed that threshold the second she stepped foot in that hotel.</p><p>If she was being honest, every other boundary they had until now broke on the West Coast.</p><p>If she was being honest, she didn’t see the harm in breaking one more.</p><p>Karen slid the key into the lock and wheeled her suitcase into the pitch dark of 9C when she opened the door. Devil. Of course this wouldn’t be simple. Of course it would be asking too much to find Grace sitting on the couch, waiting to see if Karen would eventually follow her into the apartment. Of course she’d have to run the risk of Will intercepting her before she ever made it to the redhead. She could barely admit all of this to herself; how the hell was she supposed to begin explaining things to Wilma? <em> Oh, it’s nothing, really. I just spent the last few days in bed with your best friend, and now I need to tell her I’m in love with her. </em> Aside from making his voice jump a couple octaves, there really was nothing in it for her if she spilled it so quickly. So she shut the front door as quietly as she possibly could, took off her shoes so her heels wouldn’t click against the hardwood, and let her eyes adjust to the dark, hoping with everything she had that she wouldn’t hear the stirrings of Will waking up and catching her in the act.</p><p>She was slow to move at first, one step and a beat, another step and a beat. Thinking that a quicker pace would give her away. Hoping that this would give her more time to prepare. Knowing that she could have all the time in the world and she would never be prepared. But once she got Will’s bedroom door in her sightline and saw that it was closed, she let out the breath she had been holding and moved down the hallway a little easier.</p><p>She stopped in front of Grace’s door and saw that it was closed too. It was the dead end she was dreading. Like Grace was closing herself off to everyone, including Karen. Like nothing was going to open her back up again. Like trying again later would only lead to heartbreak. At least for now. She shouldn’t barge in. If she left now, no one else but her would know that she was ever here. If she left now, she could think about her next move, think about whether there was even a next move to be made. If she left now, her pride and her ego could live on unscathed. Maybe it wasn’t the happy ending she was hoping for tonight. But it was better than the thought of watching Grace reject her. With a sigh, Karen laid her hand on Grace’s bedroom door, a silent goodbye before dragging herself away and heading back to an empty house and a crushing disappointment.</p><p>The door began to move under her touch without any effort, and it made her breath hitch.</p><p>Grace hadn’t closed it the whole way. There was still a chance.</p><p>Karen thought this was the sign she wanted. But as tiptoed into the bedroom, she realized that the sight of Grace in her bed was the real sign she so desperately needed. Because right there in front of her, the redhead had the covers bunched up at her feet and was wrapped in the robe Karen sneaked into her suitcase, as if she needed that embrace to help her sleep through the night. She couldn’t believe this was real. She couldn’t believe that Grace had opened up her suitcase so soon after coming home, or that she found it underneath everything else in there, or that she even wanted it after everything Karen put her through. She couldn’t believe that after all this time playing the ice queen, Grace still wanted the chance to make her melt. It gave her the nerve to kneel down next to Grace’s side of the bed, to reach over to brush away the locks of wildfire that got tousled from sleep, to let her touch linger against her girl’s cheek, to take a moment to prepare herself.</p><p>This was it. Now or never.</p><p>“Gracie?” she whispered, nudging the redhead’s shoulder gently. “Honey, wake up.”</p><p>And then she held her breath.</p><p>She watched as Grace slowly but surely started to stir, her brow furrowing as her body brought itself out from slumber (not the way it did back in Los Angeles, when it knew for sure that it was answering Karen’s call, but almost annoyed at the thought of someone daring to wake her up). She heard the faintest groan as Grace reached that in-between of wanting to ignore the pull into consciousness and wanting to know who had the nerve to start pulling in the first place. But then her eyes slowly started to flutter open, and they adjusted to the room. They adjusted to the figure kneeling in front of her. And they grew wider once they realized who was there with her.</p><p>Karen swore that when she looked into them, she saw a hint of rediscovered hope.</p><p>Grace reached out to hold the dark haired woman’s face in her hands like she couldn’t believe this was real, like she was convinced that she was still dreaming. And as the redhead’s fingers started tracing the span of her lips, Karen pressed a kiss to her fingertips and smiled. “I see you got my message,” she murmured, daring to slide her hands over the pink silk of her own robe draped around her love.</p><p>“Oh my god, you’re really here.” Good lord. Even bogged down by sleep, Grace’s voice was the sweetest sound Karen had ever heard. “What are you doing here?”</p><p>Karen felt Grace’s arms settle around her shoulders, giving her the confidence she needed. “Owning up to my mistakes.”</p><p>She could tell Grace was starting to truly wake up from her slumber. Her smirk. The way she arched her brow. That playful streak wasn’t something that came from a semi-conscious state. “Are you kidding me? Karen Walker made a mistake?” she teased. “Impossible.”</p><p>“I know,” Karen said, her breathless laugh making Grace’s smile grow wider. “I can’t believe it either. But here we are.”</p><p>“And what mistakes are we owning up to at…” Grace shifted her gaze to the clock on her nightstand, “one-thirty in the morning?”</p><p>The dark haired woman shrugged. “Fighting it every time you fought against the rules. Pushing you away before we left L.A. Letting you walk through the door thinking I wanted to let you go. Take your pick, really.”</p><p>“You were just following the rules,” Grace said, shaking her head as she tried to dismiss it all.</p><p>“Oh, come on honey, I never wanted to follow the rules. I just threw them out there because I thought it would free us up to do whatever we wanted. You wouldn’t have to worry about telling Will. I wouldn’t have to worry about how much it would hurt when you decided it wasn’t worth straining your friendship with him to keep me around.”</p><p>“Hey.” Grace held Karen’s face in her hands. Her touch was so gentle, it made Karen want to cry. “What Will would think about us...that never scared me. Maybe it would have twenty years ago, but I’m too old now not to fight for what I want.”</p><p>Twenty years ago? Did that mean… “You felt something back then?”</p><p>The light in Grace’s eyes was blinding. “Are you seriously trying to tell me you didn’t?”</p><p>Karen broke out into a relieved breathless laugh that made her body feel weightless. “The other night, when you asked me if I ever thought about being with you, I was <em> this close </em> to telling you that I’ve been thinking about it ever since we met. But I didn’t know how you would take it.” She took a beat, rested her forehead against Grace’s. “I don’t want to lose this, honey. I want you. I always have.”</p><p>She heard Grace take a shaky breath like she was trying to hold back tears and failing. “What happened to the stagecoach turning back into a pumpkin at midnight?”</p><p>“Well, that’s just it, Cinderella. I can’t pretend that everything’s gone back to normal. I can’t pretend that I don’t love you.”</p><p>Grace bit down on her lip to control her grin before realizing it was pointless, pulling back so she could see the honesty in Karen’s eyes. “You love me? Like you wanna be my girlfriend or something?”</p><p>Her voice, still a bit shaky, took on that same tone it took on their last day in Los Angeles, playing with Karen at the bar because she wanted to take her on a date. She fought against the instinct to harken back to that moment completely--something about a playful <em> Don’t push it, Red </em> felt like it would kill the mood--and instead tried a tack she was still getting used to: one of vulnerable sincerity. “Yeah. Like I wanna be your girlfriend,” she murmured. “I don’t think I’ve ever wanted anything more in my life.”</p><p>And with that, Grace pulled her in for a kiss.</p><p>Karen sighed at the contact, blindsided by how different this kiss tasted. Back in L.A., every time she kissed Grace, she tasted the thrill of something new mixing with the inevitable end. It had intoxicated her, made her head swim, made her forget the way Grace tasted during all of those platonic kisses that peppered their friendship, made her realize how much she was going to miss it when it was gone. She didn’t think anything could top it. But now...now she realized how wrong she was. Because this kiss still had the thrill of something new. But it was mixed with hope. It was mixed with the promise of a brilliant future. It overwhelmed her body like nothing else could. It tasted like a new chapter.</p><p>And Karen couldn’t wait to start it.</p><p>“I didn’t really think this through,” she laughed when they broke the kiss. “Barging in like this. What do I do now?”</p><p>Grace ran her fingers through her girl’s hair. “Well, for starters...you could come to bed. Spend the night with me. And then we can go from there.”</p><p>Such a simple solution. Normally, Karen would question it, think it was too good to be true, convince herself that the other shoe was bound to drop. But she was safe here. She was sure. And she was beginning to see that things didn’t always have to be so complicated. “My suitcase is in the living room,” she said as she stripped down and climbed into bed. She watched as Grace slipped out of her robe and let it drop to the floor. “Will’s gonna ask questions in the morning.”</p><p>The redhead’s smirk against the moonlight was the most beautiful thing Karen had ever seen. “Let him ask. He wanted to know what happened in L.A. So I’ll tell him what happened.” She turned so that her eyes locked with Karen’s. “I went to a conference. I gave a speech. And I fell in love.” She said it like falling in love was the inevitable conclusion. And Karen could play that trip back in her mind one thousand times over; there was just no other way their time in Los Angeles could have gone.</p><p>Grace burrowed into Karen’s arms like she was always meant to be there, as Karen marvelled at how perfectly they fit together, her missing puzzle piece finally found, locked in, making her feel whole. No more walls. No more boundaries. No more bending to make something work until she almost broke, only to realize it was pointless. No more lying to herself. No more. Not here, in this bed, with this girl. Karen was filled with a brilliant energy, one that should have made it impossible to sleep. But she finally had a safe place to rest her head. And decades of pretending she was fine had exhausted her. And as she felt her eyes growing heavier and heavier with sleep, she realized it was okay. Because tomorrow, she was going to wake up with Grace in her arms. Tomorrow, she would take on the new day with her love by her side. Tomorrow, they would answer all of the questions Will would undoubtedly have, and they won’t be afraid. Tomorrow, they would start their new chapter. Tomorrow, they would let their love be.</p><p>She fell asleep smiling, knowing there wasn’t anything in the world that could be better than that.</p>
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